Mine
by DarkAngel0410
Summary: Randy is faced with a desicion that will change his life. SLASH, AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Story Title: **Mine

**Story Type: **Slash, AU

**Characters:** Randy Orton, Ted DiBiase, Cody Rhodes, Chris Sabin, Alex Shelley, Mike Mizanin, Alex Riley, Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, Adam Copeland, Jay Reso, Justin Gabriel, John Cena, Evan Bourne and whoever else gets dragged into this one.

**Pairings: **Only Codaisi at this point

**Rating: **PG-13/NC-17

**Disclaimer:** We all know the drill; not mine, they belong to themselves and Vince/TNA.

**Warnings:** Language, Slash

**A/N:** So, I got an idea to do this AU story -I was reading my buddy's fic: InTheDark34 & The Life of a Teenage Nerd in RAW Highschool, check it out, it fucken rocks- when my Randy muse decided he wanted to be in an AU, but he wanted it to be a werewolf/vampire thing. Well, all my other muses decided to jump on the bandwagon and here we are. Hope everyone likes it; I haven't written anything as long as this story's promising to be since...well, forever, pretty much. Enjoy, peeps.

**A/N2: **For anyone who's curious, I am still working on the next story in my 'Family' series. I'm hoping once I work on this one for a little while, my muses will be more cooperative about the other story.

Randy leaned against a tree, looking around his forest absently. Something was off, he could feel it. Anyone who lived as long as he had learned to listen when their instincts were humming the way his were now.

Randy tensed when he heard a branch snap a few feet behind him but relaxed once he caught Ted's scent when the wind shifted. He had gotten closer then anyone else would have, but there was more then one reason why Ted was his second.

Ted waited another minute before trotting into the clearing, stopping when he was a few feet from his Alpha. He raised his gaze until he looked into Randy's eyes. After ten seconds, he dropped his eyes and looked at the ground.

Randy chuckled. Even when it was just the two of them, Ted was always careful to show him respect before they talked about anything. Ted sat on his haunches, mouth open in a wolf laugh as if he could guess what Randy was thinking.

Ted came up almost to Randy's chest, his dark brown fur was shaggy and tipped with white. His eyes were focused on Randy but he knew that part of Ted was always aware of his surroundings, was always accessing any scent, any sound for the threat it could bring. It was part of the price you paid for being dominant and for being alphic. If Ted wasn't content being his second, Randy knew he was capable of running his own pack. But Ted was perfectly happy where he was and Randy was glad for it.

"What's up, Ted? Need help with the hunt?" Randy asked out loud instead of using the telepathic link he had as Ted's Alpha. There was a shimmer around Ted; nothing fancy or bright, just a little break in the air that made Ted look hazy for a minute. Just a minute and then there was a man on one knee, his head bowed where the wolf had been.

"Get up, Ted." Randy told the younger man, making sure to keep his voice even. Ted stood and stretched before walking over until he was next to Randy. "What're ya doing over here?" Ted asked, curiosity and concern lacing his voice. It was a testament to the kind of Alpha Randy was that he didn't bristle at the idea of someone questioning him. Randy knew that Ted genuinely liked him as well as respected him, and the fact that Randy had been spending so much time alone was starting to worry some of the pack.

Wolves drew strength from their pack as well as from their mates. Werewolves were the same, and while it wasn't unusual for them to spend time alone, it was strange for someone to do it as often as he had been lately. Randy had been getting even more short tempered than usual lately. If his control hadn't been so solid -if he hadn't been use to controlling his wolf since he was a kid, there would have been more then one time when he would've seriously hurt someone.

Randy knew something was going to give, it was only a matter of time. He sighed and looked at Ted, his blue eyes slightly worried. "I'm just thinking. Something seems wrong. Off. I can feel it." Randy confided to Ted, his own eyes scanning the surrounding area. "Cody hasn't had any visions," Ted said, a small half smile on his lips at the mention of his mate.

Most wolves had specialized gifts or talents. Ted, for instance, had even better hearing then the heightened one that came standard. In fact, it was better then Randy's. Cody, Ted's mate, had visions that were frighteningly accurate. Most of them were warnings to the pack as a whole or for Cody personally. It was rare for him to have a vision about any one person.

As for Randy's talent? Well, he had more then one, actually. He was very strong telepathicly, even beyond the link he had with each of his pack that he was his right as Alpha. He could communicate with almost anyone and hear them as well. Most werewolves were partially psychic anyway, so communicating with other wolves was impressive, but not unheard of. What made Randy's gift so strong was that he could 'talk' with humans as well as he could with his pack.

His other talent was very strange; it only showed itself once every four or five generations: he could scent vampires. To every other werewolf he had known, they smelled like nothing. Which was one of the ways they knew it was a vampire. Even dead people -well, regular dead people, anyway, smelled sickly sweet, like something going bad.

"Course, that doesn't mean anything," Ted went on, scratching his bare chest. Both men ignored the fact that neither one of them had any clothes on. When you made the Change your clothes -and anything else you might have in your pockets or anywhere else on you- disintegrated and since they spent a good part of their lives Changing from one to the other, they learned to ignore it. After a while, clothes, no clothes, it was all the same.

"Well, it means that we're not headed for a major catastrophe," Randy drawled, raising an eyebrow. "That's good to know." "True enough." Ted agreed.

"What's up?" Randy asked. "You having trouble with the hunt?" "No; I left Mike and Adam in charge of hunting down Griffin," Ted growled, his eyes turning yellow for a second before he got himself under control.

Randy could understand Ted's anger. Griffin was a member of the pack; former member of the pack, Randy corrected himself. He was a rogue now, in the worst sense of the word. As such, he had forfeited all rights to a pack. He had forfeited it the first time he laid a hand on a human unprovoked. He had been able to hide what he was doing by being very careful and doing it far enough away from their territory that it hadn't triggered any of Cody's visions. But last week, he had made the mistake of attacking a human girl in town as she was walking home from a date.

Cody had woken up in a sweat, screaming when the vision had hit him. As soon as Ted realized what was going on he had called Randy and Randy had sent Ted out with Mike, Adam and John to chase him down. He had severed his tie to Griffin the moment he had gotten off the phone; it had been excruciating and Randy knew it was supposed to be. He was supposed to protect his pack, not leave them alone, but Griffin's crimes had been severe enough to warrant an public beheading in front of the rest of the pack. He was still undecided about that. For now, he had told Mike, Adam and John just to bring him in.

All three had told Randy that they had him cornered in a section of the mountains. He trusted them to know what they were talking about. They had a talent for tracking that was almost scary in it's reliability; as well as the strength and ruthlessness that made sure they did whatever they had to to keep the pack safe.

That coupled with their sense of loyalty and their power was why they were his enforcers. They answered only to him and Ted. Outsiders looked at the pack and wondered why it hadn't fallen apart. It wasn't normal to have that many alphic wolves in one pack; they should have all been snapping and fighting with each other twenty four/seven. Added to this already seemingly strangeness was that fact that Randy's pack was one of the few that accepted strays.

Ted gotten thrown out of his pack when he was only fourteen; his father had caught him kissing a boy from town and beaten him bloody (which took quite a lot for a werewolf, even one as young as Ted had been) before abandoning him on a highway road and telling him that he had no family.

Randy's father, Bob, had found the young wolf when he was out of town on pack business and had brought him to his house after getting permission from Vince, their Alpha. Ted had fostered with them until he was an adult. Randy had already been twenty-one and had taken Ted under his wing. It had been three years before Ted had confided in Randy about why he had been beaten and abandoned.

Randy had already known he was going to become Alpha one day, whether it was of his home pack or another one was the only thing that was up for chance. Randy had sworn to Ted that he would always have a home where ever Randy was.

When Randy was only twenty-seven he became Alpha and appointed Ted as his second. Randy defeated almost ten wolves the first week, killing all of them. Ted had fought almost as many, killing several of them and maiming the rest.

When Ted had mated with Cody six months later, only one person had questioned it and Randy's easy acceptance of the mating. Ted had fought him one on one until Shane couldn't walk any more. After that, no one had ever said anything; as far as the rest of the pack was concerned they had earned their place.

Despite these differences, or maybe because of them, the pack was thriving. There were fifty wolves, plus the cubs and teenagers. While they had their share of problems, there was hardly ever any serious fights that required him to step in.

Which brought them back to the Griffin problem. Randy frowned; Ted had mentioned Mike and Adam, but where was John? "John's looping back around," Ted answered his unasked question, displaying his knack for almost reading Randy's mind. "In case he manages to break away from Mike and Adam, John wants to be sure there's no escape route for him." Ted explained, managing to look both doubtful and proud of The Three's foresight. Randy agreed; while it was unlikely that Griffin would evade the trap that was laid out for him, it was always good to have a back up plan.

Ted's eyes glazed over and Randy could sense he was 'talking' with Cody. After a second, Ted focused back on his Alpha. "Sorry, Cody was checking in on the hunt." Ted explained. "No problem," Randy assured him. He was about to say something else when his senses started humming and a strange scent shifted through the trees. Ted went on alert almost as soon as he did, moving until he was standing in front of Randy, his eyes yellow and his claws out. His nose flared, trying to pick up a scent, growling when there was nothing. A second later, branches broke confirming his guess.

"Fangs." Ted stated, his voice a low growl. Randy nodded, deciding to go face the vampires instead of waiting for them. "There's at least two of them," Ted went on, his head tilted as he picked up the noise. "They're not being very careful. Could be a trap." It was a good guess; vampires could be quiet as a damn cat when they wanted to be.

"Change," Randy ordered, his eyes hard. "I want to show those fucken fangs who the hell they're messing with." Ted hesitated but stepped away from Randy, nodding. It was an insult to Randy for fangs to show up on their land without clearing it first. It was also grounds for a swift execution; one even their Makers wouldn't question.

Randy took a deep breath and reached out to the wolf that was pacing restlessly inside. An intense pain followed by sheer joy as he switched to the form that was his other half.

In minutes two wolves stood where the human males had been. Randy shook out his fur and stretched while Ted butted his head against Randy's side in affection. Randy gnawed on his ear, mock growling.

After they were done reestablishing the bonds of pack, Randy turned to go, moving so he was in the lead, Ted following on his right side, only two steps behind him. Randy was an inch or two taller then Ted was, but the younger man was bulkier then he was. Bob had once told them that they made the perfect team: Randy was built for speed and Ted for power.

_**This way,**_ Randy told his second, scenting the wind and cutting across the ground that they were both so familiar with. _**They're by the caves.**_ Ted cut across until he was in front of Randy. _**Let me go first,**_ he told his Alpha firmly. _**It could be a trap.**_

Randy growled but consented; Ted was right and they both knew it.

Ted paused at the edge of the clearing, being sure to listen for any little noise; his eyes had already picked up the two vampires huddled next to each other, almost as if they were trying to get warm. They stumble toward the caves, too wrapped up in each other to feel that they were under the scrutiny of the only thing that could make them prey.

_**Is there anyone else around? I can't hear anything, but...**_ Ted trailed off, waiting for Randy's confirmation. _**There's no on else here.**_ Randy told him, mentally rolling his eyes when he 'heard' Ted's low laugh. _**Let's have some fun,**_ Ted suggested, his tail wagging slightly. _**OK,**_ Randy agreed, amused and ready to blow off some steam. _**Go for it.**_

Ted tipped his muzzle up and howled, the sound falling off at the end until Randy picked it up and howled as well, his longer and louder then Ted's had been. To anyone familiar with the pack, it would have been heard and understood as the happy and playful sound it was, but to anyone else. Let's just say, that the two vampires looking around wildly and then running full out for the caves, wasn't an abnormal reaction.

_**I love it when they run, Ted**_ whined happily, letting Randy pull ahead as they started the chase. Randy couldn't help but agree as they loped easily after them, the vampires speed nothing compared to the werewolves.

As they pulled closer to the two vampires, Randy had no idea how dramatically his life was about to change.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Here we go, Chapter 2. My muses are loving this; although, I think they might be taking it a little too seriously. I asked Mikey to help me spell a word and he growled at me. *rolls eyes* He looked so cute, I didn't have the heart to laugh at him. I just patted him on the head and used spell check. My Randy muse has been preening in front of the mirror for the better part of the day; I think he's trying to convince himself that he looks just as good without the belt. Of course, he looks smoking but I don't really want to tell him that. His ego is already fucken huge, it does not need to get any bigger. Everyone else has been pretty quiet; except for Mikey and A-Ri. Ever since last week, Mike's been strutting around and Alex's been running his mouth off to anyone he sees about Mikey's win. At first, I thought Randy was going to geek about it, but he's been OK about the whole thing. He'll never admit it, but Randy's pretty fond of Mikey, so I think he's cool with him getting the title. Thank god the Fugly Monkey doesn't have it. Also currently in the gloating game are my MMG muses; they've taken to walking around in just the tag belts for the last week. Anyway, here's the next chapter, peeps. Hope you like it.

**A/N2: **Real quick: OK, BB -a.k.a Justin Gabriel (don't ask me, Randy gave him the tag and Gabriel likes it, so I'm just gonna go with it)- plays a huge part in this. Now, we all know BB is from Cape Town, South Africa. Well, I had the brilliant idea to throw around some Afrikaans phrases here and there. Well, my Gabriel muse ran with that idea and I came to realize pretty quickly that: 1. I don't know Afrikaans (hey, if you want Spanish, I'm your girl) and 2. My Gabriel muse knows just as much as I do *glares at BB who runs and hides behind Randy* So, I'm using Google translate. If any of it is wrong, I apologize.

Randy ran after the vampires, growling as their scent hit his nose again. Ted loped up and around them, dashing in front of them and cutting off their escape into the caves. The vampires stopped short, their eyes wide and frightened.

The taller one had brown hair and light brown skin, almost a caramel color; the smaller man had black hair and pale skin. Both their eyes were a light red color; something that only happened in new vampires or when a vampire gorged himself on human blood.

_**They're baby's, **_Ted admitted grudgingly, disappointment coloring his mental voice. _**They have to be,**_ Randy agreed with his second. _**Otherwise they'd smell like blood. Unless...**_

Randy trailed off, debating the likely hood of them murdering someone and washing the blood off before coming into the woods. The only problem with that theory was that they would have had to do it within the pack's territory, and if they had done that, it would've triggered Cody's visions.

_**No; Cody would've saw that, **_Ted told Randy as soon as the thought formed in his head. _**They must be newbies. Why would their Maker abandon them like that?**_

Randy had no answer for Ted as they circled the vampires, keeping them in between the two of them. The vampires were still huddled together, arms around each other. For some reason it annoyed Randy to see the smaller man cling to the other vampire.

_**We need answers. I'm going to Change back, **_Randy told Ted. He growled a little, but otherwise didn't question his Alpha's decision. _**Stay wolf in case it is a trap.**_

_**Alright. But I'm coming back by you.**_ Ted informed Randy; with a last growl for the fangs, Ted trotted over by his Alpha. Stopping in front of him, he made sure to keep his eyes on the fangs and his ears trained for any other sounds that might mean danger to his Alpha.

His lip pulled over his fangs in a snarl, poised to attack at the slightest movement from the vampires. His fur was standing on end and a low rumbling growl was coming from his chest. Randy could almost feel sorry for the vampires; Ted would kill either one of them without hesitation if he thought they were attempting to hurt Randy. He would give his life before he let them get close enough to hurt his Alpha.

Randy didn't say anything; he didn't have to. The bond went both ways, he would give his life for any of his pack.

Randy took a deep breath and reached for the part of him that was human. A moment later and he felt the breeze against his bare skin and the dirt and leaves beneath his leg. Standing up, he started walking toward the vampires, Ted only an inch or two in front of him.

"What are you doing on my land?" Randy asked, his voice hard and demanding. "I didn't know," the taller vampire answered, his voice soft and laced with an accent Randy couldn't place. "Evan and I were just trying to get away -" "Don't, Justin!" Evan hissed, his eyes wide and scared. "They'll make us go back. Remember what Wade said." "Evan, _asseblief, glo my_." Justin pleaded with his friend, feeling he could trust the men in front of him for some reason.

_**Did you catch that?**_ Randy asked Ted, keeping the bulk of his attention on the vampires, who were staring at each other. He didn't really expect an answer from the younger man. _**Yeah, **_Ted told him. _**Didn't understand all of it, though.**_ _**I caught the word 'please' but that's it.**_

_**How the hell did you know that?**_ Randy questioned, surprised that his second knew the foreign language. _**My mother liked old movies; one of her favorites took place in South Africa. **_Ted answered shortly and Randy picked up his anger and sadness through their link.

Randy put a hand on the top Ted's head, scratching behind his ears softly; reminding him that he wasn't alone any more, that his pack was here for him. Randy understood that there were some wounds that never fully healed, that they would sneak up and take a fresh bite out of you when you least expected it.

Ted relaxed subtly. He was still on edge with strange vampires so close, but Randy knew he had let go of the past for right now.

"We're sorry," Justin apologized, his tongue darting out to lick his lips nervously. Randy's eyes focused on Justin's mouth, briefly sidetracked for a minute. "We didn't know that _weervolven_ lived here."

_**Yeah, right,**_ Ted snorted, blowing air through his nose. _**We're the only pack for miles. That's bullshit. **_

"Do you expect me to believe that? You trespassed on our land; that's grounds for your death -the real one this time. I hate being lied to; it puts me in a bad mood. If you want to get out of this alive, I suggest you start talking." Randy stated coldly, his arms crossed loosely over his chest. Ted snarled, snapping his teeth at the vampires. His amusement when they jumped was loud and clear to Randy.

"We didn't know!" Evan said fiercely, stepping toward Randy. Ted growled, lunging at Evan and catching his arm in his mouth. Ted bit down, hard enough that he would have crushed the arm if Evan was human. Evan whimpered and tried to move his arm back. Ted didn't attack Evan any more, he just held on. Ted was trying to teach Evan a lesson that might save his life later on.

Randy knew something was going on; Ted could have ripped the young vampire to shreds, but instead, was teaching him a lesson the same way he would a pup or a young wolf. Ted instincts were telling him the same thing Randy's were: something was going on and it involved the vampires in front of them.

"Evan, stop moving," Justin urged his friend, watching Randy the whole time. "My arm." He whispered, anxiety coating his words. "I know, but you must stop moving. You threatened his Alpha; you know what that means." Justin told Evan, trying to avert the disaster that was looming.

Evan did know and he had let his nerves get the better of him. He took a deep breath and stopped struggling; shifting his eyes until he was looking at the ground.

Ted waited a minute, making sure to assert his dominance over the vampire before he let him go and went back to his spot directly in front of Randy. _**He knows our ways, **_Ted mused. _**At least enough to keep himself from getting killed.**_

Randy agreed. _**But where did he learn? And if it was his Maker, why go to the trouble to teach them that and then abandon them in our territory? **_

_**The darker one said they were trying to get away, **_Ted remembered, his curiosity evident. _**What could make two newbies leave their Maker? They need to learn how to hunt, same as a pup. From what Sabin and Shelley have told us, Makers foster newbies for years before they can go out on their own. Why leave before you're weaned?**_

_**That's one of the reasons you're my second,**_ Randy told him, pride lacing his thoughts. _**You've got brains to back up all your brawn.**_ Ted's tail wagged a little at the praise before dropping back onto the ground.

"I'm still waiting," Randy told them, eyes glinting dangerously. "And you might want to start with why you're running around without your Maker."

Justin swallowed, exchanging glances with Evan. Something was telling him to tell the man in front of him everything; from today until three months ago when this whole nightmare had started. But it wasn't only his story and he wouldn't betray Evan's friendship, no matter how attractive he found the other man. Evan sighed and then nodded slightly.

"We didn't know this was your land; our um, Maker told us nothing while we were traveling through." Neither one of the wolves missed the tremor that wracked the smaller vampire's body.

_**He's afraid,**_ Ted stated, tilting his head to the side. _**They both are. You don't think they were Turned against their will? **_Ted growled fiercely; he had no love for most fangs but to be forced...

The vampires both jumped, prompting Justin to hurry on with his story. "He, uh, kept us in the car most of the time, and the hotel room. We weren't even sure what part of the country we were in, but once we were outside, Evan said we were probably down south somewhere." "North Carolina," Randy told him, his voice still hard, but Ted could tell he was starting to soften towards them. "Just outside Cameron county."

"I thought so," Evan said softly, his voice so low that Randy could barely hear him. "I used to spend a lot of time down here when I was a kid." Justin laid a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder before going on. "There was someone with us, another vampire, Heath, he taught us the stuff about _weervolven_. He knew we were trying to leave and tried to help what little he could.

"We were changed -" "Turned," Randy corrected when Ted growled a little, amused at his second's indignation at the vamp using the wrong word. "Wolves 'Change', vampires are 'Turned'." "Right," Justin said, glancing at the shaggy wolf staring at him. "Well, we were Turned a few months ago, but it..." Here Justin faltered for the first time, glancing uncertainly at Evan.

"It wasn't our idea. Wade Turned us during sex," Evan told them bluntly, his voice angry. "He must have slipped us something when we weren't looking. 'Cause let me tell you, there's no way in hell I would have touched him otherwise."

Ted growled, his anger evident to everyone. _**No wonder they ran; I would've too. Of course, I would have killed that stupid fucker first, **_he added thoughtfully.

_**We can't send them back. I'm not about to hand anyone back over to that kind of thing. **_Randy told Ted, his mental voice firm. _**Even if we haven't got the whole story out of them yet.**_

_**Sabin can tell when other fangs are lying, **_Ted reminded his Alpha. _**And Shelley's been around for a long time. They should be able to help. I don't like the idea of bringing them that close, but between us and Sabin and Shelley, it should be OK. The Three should be done soon, too.**_

Randy debated for a minute. Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley were the only vampires he trusted; as far as he knew they were the only vampires to belong to a pack, ever. They had proven themselves to him more then once, and he trusted them almost as he trusted Ted and The Three. Part of him didn't want to chance bringing the two newborns near the pack, but a bigger part of him was telling him to keep Justin and, to a lesser degree, Evan safe.

He could feel Ted's hesitancy in bringing them that far into pack land, but he also knew Ted believed it was their best shot at fixing this mess.

_**We got him,**_ Mike said, pride and excitement in his voice. _**We're bringing him back now.**_

_**Good job. Where's Adam and John?**_ Randy asked, focusing on the Griffin problem while Ted kept an eye on the newborns.

_**They're carrying him down the mountain; he's probably going to be out for a day at least, **_Mike said, focusing on his Alpha as he realized something was distracting him. _**What's wrong?**_

_**I need you to drop off Griffin; tell Alex and Jay to put him in the cage and keep an eye on him. Then you and the other two to meet me at Sabin and Shelley's.**_ Randy ordered, making his mind up.

_**How fast do you need us to get down there? **_Mike asked, knowing that Randy would explain when he got there.

_**Don't break your neck getting here; Ted's with me. **_Randy told the younger man. _**But there's something we need to take care of.**_

_**Alright. See you in about an hour. **_Mike agreed, knowing that if Ted was with their Alpha he would be fine until they got back.

_**Change back. We're going to meet them at Sabin's. **_Randy informed Ted before he spoke out loud.

"You're coming with us," Randy informed the young vampires; his voice was just as hard as it had been before but not as cold. "You're going to see some of my pack, and we'll figure out what to do with you."

Justin nodded and elbowed Evan when the smaller man just stood there. Ted moved until he was standing slightly in front of Randy. "Let's go," Randy said, motioning the vampires in front of them. "Don't try anything," Ted ordered, his voice fierce. Evan turned around to say something but decided against it when he saw the other man's eyes were a bright yellow.

"I'm Randy, and this is Ted," Randy went on, determined to learn more about these two strangers. Especially from Justin. His attention kept wandering over to the other man, lingering on his shoulder and his lower back. "Watch it, Randy," Ted murmured, amusement in his voice. "This isn't the time to think about bending over a fang; no matter how pretty they are."

Randy scowled at his second, before continuing talking to the newborns.

"It won't take us too long to get there, maybe an hour." Randy informed them. "Wait, an hour? Are we walking the whole way?" Evan asked in disbelief. Ted chuckled, the sound surprisingly deep. "Well, if ya want, we can Change and chase ya. That would be a little quicker." Ted drawled, his accent a bit thicker then it usually was.

"We're grateful," Justin interjected, trying to keep the peace. "I'm sure the walk won't be bad." Randy looked at him, _again_, and for some reason Justin thought that if he still could, he'd be blushing.

The rest of the trip passed quickly, with the vampires keeping quiet and Ted taunting Randy about the way he was watching Justin. Randy brushed Ted off, knowing it was all in play. Ted kept an eye on the situation; if Justin was on the up and up he didn't see why Randy shouldn't play with him a little.

Randy needed to take it easy once in a while; unwind, Ted thought smirking. And the fang was easy enough on the eyes; not as cute as Cody, but really, who was?

Ted laughed at himself, shaking his head and looking at Randy, realized he was staring at the newborn and started laughing. The vampires barely looked at him, probably deciding it was some werewolf weirdness. Randy blushed a little, before playfully swatting Ted in the side.

As they got closer to Sabin and Shelley's, Ted became more and more on guard; his focus shifting from just protecting Randy to protecting Randy and the vampires. Some of the pack could be excitable, and more then a few of the teenagers would attack first and ask questions later.

Walking up to the front porch, Randy knocked even though the two vampires inside would have known they were on the porch already. "Mike's almost here," Ted murmured, his ears picking up the tread of his friends paws on the ground as he ran towards them.

Randy raised an eyebrow as the vampires looked at him in disbelief. "It's scary how good you are at that sometimes." Randy commented. "He runs different than Adam does." Ted said, grinning at his Alpha.

Sabin opened the door, a sunny smile on his face. Justin's eyes widened when he realized Sabin was also a vampire, his mouth dropping open when Sabin dropped his eyes to the floor for a minute.

"We need help," Randy stated, gesturing to his side. Sabin's eyes went black for a second as he read the other vampires. Without saying anything, he motioned them all inside, smiling briefly at Ted as he walked in behind everyone.

Sabin sent out a brief message to Shelley, letting him know who was here. Then he sat back and waited until randy would tell him what he needed.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:** So, this story is moving along pretty well. I think part of it is because my muses love fantasy and horror; I know this story has no blood at all, but the way everyone's clamoring for it there might be some later on. While I was watching a rerun of RAW, Cody and Teddy were yelling for Cole to get beheaded, E&C wanted to see another Blood Bath -honestly, I'd love to see that, too. MMG want to go on a rampage and beat Beer Money bloody. *shakes head* I love them all, but no more horror movies after this. But here's the next chapter, hope everyone likes.

**A/N2:** I still haven't found my Matt muse; even having Jeff wander around yelling 'Help' isn't working; normally, as soon as his baby bro is in trouble Matt comes running. He better get his ass back here, or he's going to end up castrated. Seriously. I wanted some Hardy action in this story (no Hardycest planned for this one, although, to be honest, it depends on the kind of mood my Hardy muses are in when I get a hold of them. If it comes up -pun definitely intended- I'll post a warning at the beginning of the chapter.) Anyways, if anyone sees him, send him back, please? Thanks, peeps.

Chris leaned back against the couch, his ankle crossed over his knee. Since they were waiting for 'Lex, he took the chance to observe the new vampires.

Two of them, only a few months old, Chris judged. "'Lex's out hunting," Chris told his Alpha, smiling. "He's on his way back now." Randy nodded. "John and Adam are dropping off Griffin; Cody and Alex are going to lock him in the cage for now."

Chris nodded, not surprised that they had captured the rouge. His eyes flicked to the newborns before he looked at Randy. "We found them by the caves; we need your help and Shelley's expertise," Randy informed him. "Once they drop him off, they're going to head over here. Mike should be here in a few." "He's a couple blocks away." Ted interjected, grinning at the look on his pack-mate's face.

"Ya love doing that, don't ya?" Chris joked, mimicking Ted's accent perfectly. "Well, when you're as good as I am..." Ted trailed off, shrugging his shoulders, managing to look modest and smug at the same time. "That's not what your boyfriend said," Chris told him, snickering. Ted rolled his eyes.

Before either of them could continue ragging on the other, there were three short barks. Than feet pounding on the porch, followed by a knock on the front door. After barely a second passed, the door was flung open and Mike strode in.

Justin took in this new wolf: tall, nice build, good looking -Justin was beginning to think all _weervolven_ were like this; he had yet to meet one who wasn't- Mike, however had a certain cockiness about him that even Randy was missing.

Mike stopped just inside the room, offering the traditional greeting to his Alpha. Justin was surprised to see Mike offer the same greeting to Ted, although he didn't drop his eyes for as long as he did with Randy.

Mike looked around the room, his trademark smirk on his lips. "Hey, Sabin," Mike offered, keeping his eyes on the newborns. His ice blue eyes were cold, and Justin could feel Evan shifting next to him, and Justin was a little scared himself. This wolf look capable of ripping them apart and then going out for lunch like nothing had happened.

"Where's Shelley? Hunting?" Chris nodded, raising an eyebrow when Mike chuckled. "It takes him longer every time; must be his old age kicking in." "Make sure I'm there when you tell him that. I'd pay to see that fight." Chris said, laughing. Ted chuckled, too and even Randy cracked a smile.

"He wanted a little bit of a walk, this time," Chris explained, smiling slightly. "Normally, he'd just go to Raleigh," Chris informed the newborns, knowing it would be easier to read them if they were relaxed.

"Is Raleigh in your territory?" Evan asked, his voice slightly apprehensive. Randy raised an eyebrow. "Yes," Mike answered, his voice flat except for a thin thread of hate Justin could hear.

Ted moved a little, resting his hand on Mike's back, Randy briefly touching Mike's shoulder. Even Chris offered him a warm smile; all of them anchoring Mike to the pack. Mike closed his eyes for a second before opening them.

"Yes," Mike repeated, his voice even; the disturbing note from before was gone. "Randy has all the way to the border as his territory. Why?" "I just," Evan stammered, taking a deep breath before continuing. "I don't understand why you would act like this with us, you know, making sure none of your pack kill us, and then let someone kill humans."

Ted growled, a low rumbling noise that slowly filled the room. He took three steps forward, gripping Evan by the throat and slamming him against the wall. "Ya don't know what you're saying," Ted snarled, his eyes shot with yellow and Evan could feel the tips of Ted's claws against his throat. "I'm giving ya one minute to apologize before I tear ya apart."

Randy clenched his jaw, but didn't say anything. Saying an Alpha didn't protect those under his care was one of the worst insults you could offer. Regardless of whether Evan realized what he was saying, he had to learn. And though it might look cruel, Randy knew to survive you had to learn your lessons the hard way sometimes, otherwise they didn't mean anything.

"But you said that he went hunting; vampires have to kill when they feed." Evan whispered, thankful that he didn't have to breath any more. Ted's hand tightened for a second before relaxing. He removed his hand and Evan dropped back onto his feet, only slightly off balance.

"Who told ya that?" Ted demanded after exchanging a look with Randy. "Wade. He told us," Evan shuddered, unable to go on. Justin thought it was safe to move again, so he walked over to stand next to Evan. "He told us that we had to _iemand dood te maak; _to kill someone," he translated when he saw the blank looks on everyone's face. "When we had to feed; he said all vampires do it."

Randy growled, the sound echoing from Ted and Mike. Randy glanced at Sabin, noting the vampire's vacant look and black eyes. Evan twitched a little, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Truth," Chris said, his voice a little hollow. "The little one tells the truth." "Hey, I'm not that small." Evan protested, a long suffering expression on his face.

_**He felt me read him, **_Chris informed Randy. _**The other one did, too. He just hid it better. He's got the hots for you, boss. **_

"You don't have to kill anyone," Chris said, sounding more like himself. His eyes were back to their normal color, too. "It happens sometimes; especially when you're young, or you lose control. But you don't need to kill humans to live." "But Wade told us." Evan insisted, sounding like a first grader defending Santa Claus.

"He lied," Mike told them, a growl still in his voice. "Probably 'cause he's a sick fuck, even for a fang." Chris looked at Mike, frowning. "Don't look at me like that," Mike told him, a smirk back on his lips. "You and Shelley aren't fangs, you're pack."

"Mike." Randy said softly, but it was enough to have Mike shut his mouth. The smirk stayed on his lips, though and his eyes were gleaming. "Shelley's here." Ted said a minute before they could hear footsteps coming up the path.

"I actually knew that," Chris told Ted. "How?" Evan asked suddenly, his hands fisted in frustration. "I can barely hear anything. It's just this rushing noise most of the time." "I'm mated to 'Lex," Chris explained patiently. He tapped the side of his head, smiling. "I can always sense where he is when I concentrate on him. You're having problems hearing things 'cause now you're hearing everything, all at once. It should start calming down once you get use to it, and you learn how to process everything."

The door swung open again and Alex Shelley walked in, a grin on his lips. He stopped to greet Randy before continuing over to his mate. "Well, Chris, look at this. I'm gone for a couple hours and when I get back, there's five guys in our living room. And three of them don't have any clothes on. "

"What can I say? I have a big appetite." Chris said, leering up at Alex. Alex smirked, leaning against the wall behind Chris, knowing that Randy would want to get on with things.

"What's going on, boss?" Alex asked, keeping his eyes on the new vampires. The words might have been flippant but there was respect behind them and that was what had always mattered to Randy.

Alex and Mike were actually very much alike; not that either one of them would admit it. They used words to keep everyone at a distance and usually it worked. But once you got past all that noise, they were both very giving and trusting. Neither one knew how to do anything half way. Once they loved something -or hated it- it was with everything they had, and it was almost impossible to change their minds once they decided on anything.

Before Randy could answer Alex's question, Ted said: "John and Adam should be here in a few." "Show off." Mike muttered, elbowing Ted in the ribs. Ted grinned and then pounced on Mike. There was a short scuffle, Mike and Ted play fighting. "If you fuckers break anything, you're paying for it." Alex informed them mildly.

_**I'm surprised you're not joining in,**_ Chris told him, his eyes following the two wolves as Mike attempted to put Ted in a headlock and force him to submit. **_Usually you're the first one in a brawl._** Chris teased, knowing Alex's love of a good fight.

_**Usually, but I get the feeling Randy's not really in the mood right now.**_ Alex answered, inclining his head toward Randy.

Randy nudged Ted with his foot; even in the middle of play, Ted and Mike had made sure to keep themselves in between Randy and the newborns. Ted nodded without looking up and in thirty seconds he had Mike pinned on his stomach with his arm behind on his back. It was done without malice; the simple fact was that Ted was more dominant then Mike and even their playing reflected that.

Ted held him like that for a minute before getting to his feet and giving Mike a grin as Mike got to his feet. "Jack off." Mike said, but he was grinning at his friend.

"Look, I'm just saying that you could have waited 'til tonight to attack him. I mean, really, would it kill you to have some restraint?" A deep voice rumbled, sounding slightly disgusted. "You're such a fucken prude, Cena," a second voice said good naturally. "I didn't attack Jay. I was just saying good bye to him. Besides, I didn't hear him fucken complaining; so why should you be doing it?" "That's not the point." The first voice spluttered as they reached the porch. "Dude, you need to get fucken laid."

This announcement was made as the front door was swung open hard enough to bounce it off the wall and a tall blonde with shoulder length hair and blue eyes walked into the living room, followed by a brunette with a jar head hair cut and dark blue eyes.

Justin watched as they greeted both Randy and Ted before lounging on the wall opposite them, exchanging hello's with everyone else in the room. When the new wolves looked the vampires over, Justin was resigned to it; and he seriously doubted that this would be the last time it happened. When the shorter brunette eyed them, he barely gave Justin a glance before looking Evan over and he stiffened up, his eyes trained on Evan. Evan met his eyes and then shuddered, moving until he was behind Justin.

John growled and took a step forward before Adam grabbed his arm. "What are you doing?" Adam asked, raising an eyebrow. John looked at his pack-mate blankly for a minute. Blinking, he realized where he was and what had almost happened. "Sorry," he muttered, showing his neck to Randy, his eyes trained on the floor. "Good." Randy said shortly, wondering what the hell was wrong with John. He knew now was not the time to get into it, though.

Adam eyed John warily, looking him over as if he had hurt himself. When he noticed the way John's arms were crossed in front of his waist and he was shifting his body to the side almost as if he was trying to hide something, his eyes widened and he inhaled sharply. Adam started laughing hysterically, clutching his middle.

"Would you shut the fuck up?" John hissed, looking disgruntled. Ted looked at them with raised eyebrows. His mind quickly put two and two together. "No way." He said before crossing the room and sniffing at John. "What the hell?" John asked indignantly, shoving Ted away from him. "You know my sense of smell isn't that good." Ted told the older man, sniffing again. A familiar smell hit Ted's nose and he started laughing with Adam, who was still laughing hard enough that he was having trouble breathing.

Mike narrowed his eyes, quickly going over what had happened since John and Adam had come in the room. John was looking at the vamps, the smaller one hid behind the other one, John growled like he was pissed 'cause he lost sight of the vamp, and now he was hiding the front of his body. Mike's eyes popped open.

"No fucken way." He declared, taking a deep breath from where he was standing. Mike joined the others in laughing. Chris and Alex were both snickering softly, having caught up with the joke.

_**John got caught,**_ Ted told Randy gleefully, going back over to stand next to him. **_He's turned on, all right; and there's only one thing that could manage to do that now._**

_**I thought that's what happened when he went to step over there,**_ Randy said, glancing over at John, who was beet red. Adam and Mike were down to quiet chuckles, Adam patting John on the shoulder consolingly. John flinched away from the touch, confirming everyone's guess. He wouldn't feel right having anyone touch him until the mating was complete.

Randy sighed, he was happy that John had found his mate but it couldn't have happened at a worse time.

_**He's showing more restraint then you did when you first mated with Cody.**_ Randy told his second, remembering the way Ted had dragged Cody out of the party and not let him out of his house for three days. People still teased Cody about being a screamer because of that.

_**Hey, I was younger,**_ Ted defended himself, smiling a little. **_And besides, I could smell Cody and, well, let's just say it didn't help anything. Who knows if vampires even feel the bond the same way we do? _**

_**True enough,**_ Randy agreed. His next 'words' were directed at Sabin and Shelley. **_Could you find out if he can feel the bond? I know you don't like doing that to other people, but we need to know how crazy John might get._**

Chris hummed in agreement, his eyes going black as he scratched the surface of the newborn's thoughts, frowning a little.

_**Interesting,**_ Chris thought, projecting to both Alex and Randy. **_He feels the bond; he just doesn't realize what it is. All he knows is that he wants to screw John. He thinks he's a whore 'cause he doesn't even know John's name but wants to – Well, you get the idea. _**

_**'Lex and I were the only vamps I ever met, or even heard of for that matter, that have ever been mated, **_Chris went on, eying the new vampires again.

_**Our kind usually don't develop bonds like that, it goes against our nature, **_Alex put in, a small frown on his face.**_ Even the bond between Maker and newborn is more for survival then any kind of love or anything._**

Randy nodded thoughtfully, speaking his next words out loud, knowing that this was going to be a sensitive meeting for most of the people in this room. He only hoped no one would end up bloody by the end of it.

"John, do you need to go outside?" Randy asked softly, no censure in his voice. Mating was volatile at the best of times. He remembered how Ted was barely able to function until Cody accepted the bond. He hadn't even been able to guard Randy for more then a few minutes at a time before he would start twitching, needing to go see Cody as often as possible. The Three had picked up his slack; they were pack-mates and that meant they were always there for each other.

Apart from that, they were friends and Adam knew what it was like; he had mated with Jay when they were both only seventeen. He had his own problems to deal with; and he had had no support from his family or his pack.

All of them would help John if he needed it; there was no shame in leaning on pack when you needed help.

"No, I'm OK," John said softly, keeping his eye on Evan who had inched out from behind Justin and was watching at John with a hungry look on his face.

Randy nodded again, catching Ted's eye and then Adam and Mike's, making sure they knew to keep an eye on John until this was resolved. They nodded, Mike still smirking, and turned toward the newborn vampires again.

"Alright. Start talking," Randy said, his voice soft and deadly. "And don't lie; it fucken pisses me off. Be straight with me and you might end up not being torn into little pieces." Justin gulped, and Randy watched the way it made his Adam's apple move before dragging his attention away from the vampire.

Even flinched, rubbing his arm where Ted had bit him in the woods. John growled a little, but he was able to keep himself where he was.

Alex looked at the enforcer, and taking pity on him, walked out of the room. After being gone for barely a minute, he returned with a pair of sweatpants and threw them at John. John shot him a grateful look and pulled them on quickly.

Justin shared a look with Evan and he motioned for Justin to talk. Sighing, Justin turned and faced Randy, ready to tell him what had happened.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N1: **OK, I'm so fucken pissed right now. PISSED. I let my brother use my laptop this morning, and some how, it crashes. And takes all my stuff with it. All my notes I had on this story, and a few other ones I was in the middle of writing. My muses are still hiding out. Apparently, I scared them when I was in the middle of my bitch fit. *sighs* Apparently, Cody's not the only one who's been listening to Randy for too long. So, I'm trying to rewrite this chapter; don't know how good it'll be but, I'll do my best. Here you go, peeps.

**A/N2: **So, the last chapter and when I said that Cody and Alex were guarding Griffin while he was in the cage, it was supposed to be Jay and Alex. Sorry, peeps.

"We met Wade at a club called 'Moonlight' or something, about six months ago," Justin said, his voice soft, reaching over a comforting hand when Evan shuddered at hearing Wade's name. John growled slightly, but whether it was in response to Evan's obvious fear or the fact that Justin had his hand on Evan's shoulder was anybody's guess.

Adam patted John's shoulder briefly, letting his hand drop after a second. Adam remembered how uncomfortable it was to have someone touch him who wasn't Jay, until they were bonded. So, he kept the touch brief, just long enough to hopefully help him calm down a little. John gave Adam a grateful smile before turning back to look at Evan. Evan smiled at Justin but moved an inch, just enough so that Justin's hand dropped off his shoulder.

"At first, we only saw him there once in a while. After a month or so, it was every time. We just laughed it off as _toeval, _a, a coincidence," Justin said, stumbling over the English word for a second. "I should have known-" "How?" Evan asked, anger making his voice hard. "You're not god. "

"You might not of had a choice," Alex put in, his voice so empty that it hurt to hear it. Chris reached back and tugged on Alex's jeans until he moved forward. Once he was even with Chris's chair, he wrapped an arm around Alex's thigh and leaned his head against his waist. Alex ran his hand over the top of Chris's head, threading his fingers through Chris's hair.

_**I'm here, **_Chris told him firmly. _**You're not alone; not ever again.**_ Alex's fingers tightened briefly, he closed his eyes, trying to find some composure.

_**We're all here,**_ Randy reminded him, the rest of the pack agreeing. **_You don't need to do this now; I just need to know if they're telling the truth._**

Alex took a deep breath -even after all these years, some habits were hard to break- and opened his eyes. He could see them, his pack-mates, all smiling at him, even Mike looked sympathetic. "No, I want to do this. I need to do this." Alex said, his voice hard.

Randy nodded. _**I know you can handle it; you never back down when the pack needs you. Neither one of you. **_

It might not of sounded like much, but coming from Randy it was almost lavish.

Justin watched with interest. The brunette vampire -Justin was almost sure his name was Alex- looked tense about something, but he couldn't figure out what. He glanced down at his friend and smiled slightly when he saw he was staring at the brunette with short hair. Maybe this whole mess wouldn't be a complete waste. Justin looked up and saw Randy looking at him. He glanced away but not before he felt the shiver of arousal that skated down his spine. Randy's nose flared and for some reason, Justin thought Randy knew.

"If he was old enough, and powerful enough, he could glamour you and you wouldn't realize it." "Wait. You mean, he could read our minds and then tell us what to do?" Evan demanded. "_Seun van 'n teef._" Justin cursed.

Alex tried to think of a way to explain it to the newborns; it was strange, to have this conversation with someone who had no idea what was going on. He himself had been Made so long ago that he could barely remember his human life. And even while he wandered with Chris before they had settled here, almost everyone they had interacted with were either vampires or wolves -and once, they had even run into a shifter, which was weird 'cause Alex had thought they were extinct- the few humans they had seen were either someone's pets or humans that they simply fed on. Even once they had settled with the pack, the wolves knew the same things that they knew, if only from a different perspective.

"No, not exactly." Chris answered, moving his head, but keeping his arm around Alex's thigh. "It's more like he could take what you saw, what you heard, and twist it; tweak it until it was what he wanted it to be. Look, would you think it was weird if you kept running into Wade every time you were there?" "Yeah, but who wouldn't? It's fucken creepy." Evan said, arms crossed as he tried to keep his eyes off of the werewolf across the room from him.

"You'd be surprised." Ted murmured, shaking his head. "Well, he took that, and twisted it into something you'd find humorous," Alex explained. Justin nodded, slowly starting to understand. The wolves were listening, too but it was with the absentmindedness that comes with having heard the same lesson more then once.

"It would have been easier if you were drinking," Alex went on. The guilty look that they exchanged confirmed it. "Also, if you looked into his eyes," Chris said, finishing Alex's sentence. "Not that it matters any more, but that's usually not a good idea." Alex said, his smirk could rival the one Mike usually had on.

"Why doesn't it matter any more?" Justin asked quietly, realizing for what felt like the thousandth time in the past few months that he -they- had so much to learn, and briefly, he wondered if it was even worth learning. Maybe he should just tell these _weervolven_ to do what they do best and let them _flard _-shred- apart his body since his soul already felt like it was in tatters.

He raised his eyes finding them locked again -for what felt like the hundredth time that day, when really it's only the third or fourth- with the cool blue eyes of the _weervolven_ Alpha. Justin hitched in a breath, confused by the sudden desire that skated down his spine. It's not the first he felt it since running into these _weervolvrn_ , but it's stronger then it was before. He managed to rip his eyes away, and looked at the floor, missing the knowing grins that were exchanged at his expense.

_**Looks like you got caught, Randy,**_ Mike said and even his mental voice had a smug ring to it. _**Guess I'm the only free one left.**_

_**Shut it, Mike. You're just pissed 'cause you can't get laid. **_Adam taunted, raising an eyebrow when he felt Mike's amusement.

_**I can get tail whenever I want, Copeland,**_ Mike told the older man. _**I don't need to relay on some **__**mating bond to get the job done.**_

_**Anyone? **_Ted asked, all innocence. That immediately Mike suspicious. Ted was a lot of things, but innocent has never been one of them. Mike considers the question carefully before nodding. _**What about Alex?**_

The question took Mike by surprise. It's not the fact that Ted asked about a guy; he likes variety as much as the next wolf. But Alex Riley is one of his oldest friends. They had left Ohio together after Mike had gotten into fight with their Alpha's son. Mike had beaten the older boy, quite badly in fact. Josh couldn't take the fact that some mutt -Mike's mom was human; same as Randy's- had beaten his little boy. He had run Mike out of the pack, threatening to kill his parents and sister if he didn't leave.

Alex had come with him, stating that Mike was his pack-mate, his brother and he wasn't going to leave him just because Mike had to leave.

They had wandered down from Ohio, stopping at various places until they had hit North Carolina. Once here, they had first run into Randy at a bar where they were hustling pool for money. The rest was history.

Alex is his oldest and closest friend. Mike might be mouthy, but he wasn't stupid. He wasn't going to ruin Alex's friendship for a piece of ass.

_**If I wanted to, **_was all Mike said.

"Because vampires can't use glamour on other vampires." Alex answered, smirking at the bickering going on. "Or on us," Mike added smugly. "That's why vampires prey on humans."

"It's one of the reasons why control is so important," Randy said, making eye contact with Justin again. Justin squirmed uncomfortably and Randy smiled, so slight that if you didn't know him, you wouldn't even realize it was there.

"We can't afford the publicity it would bring if any of us -vampire and wolf- went completely crazy." "And if someone does?" Evan asked, disgust in his voice. "What do you do? Just ignore it. Or maybe they get a slap on the wrist?" Justin smacked Evan in the back of the head, afraid of what would happen after this new insult. Evan realized his mistake, his eyes widening and he seemed to draw in on himself.

There was stunned silence for a minute, before everyone burst out laughing. Even Randy was smiling and chuckling. Alex was doubled over, wild laughter escaping him. Chris was laughing so hard, that he would have stopped breathing if he was still human. Adam roared, doubled over as he kept repeating: "Wrist," over and over. John gained control of himself, making sure to keep an eye on Evan but he still had a smile.

Mike and Ted leaned on each other, tears leaking out of their eyes. Just as they started calming down they happened to glance at each other and it was enough to set them off again.

"No," Randy answered Evan, chuckling lightly. "There's no slap on the wrist. If you're lucky, the worst you'll get is an ass beating. And if you're not," Randy said, the humor leaving his voice and his eyes going frozen. The rest of the pack straightened up, the smiles leaving their faces like someone had flipped a switch off. "Well, let's just say, it's not pretty. And you might get to see it in a couple days. Hopefully it'll teach you to watch what you say," Randy told Evan, in the same tone of voice he would use on one of the teenagers. "'Cause if that doesn't do it, that ass beating is going to be in your future," Randy looks Evan in the eye, making sure he understands that Randy means it, he's not just saying something that he thinks will scare Evan.

"Finish your story." Randy told Justin, his voice steady and demanding, and Justin felt that desire again, but this time it's not just down his spine, he can feel it low in his stomach. Justin shifts from one foot to the other, and he just knows that if he could still do it, his whole face; hell, his whole body would be bright red in embarrassment right now.

"Well, we were there one night, laughing at how Wade just happened to be there again," Justin spit out the last word, his tone angry and disgusted. "He bought us some drinks; three or four, maybe." He looked to Evan for confirmation, but Evan just shrugged and looked at the ceiling. "I don't know. I still can't remember most of it. Just bits and pieces from later." Evan said, before he bit his lip, glancing at John and then looking at the ceiling again.

"All I know, is later on; maybe two or three hours. It's_ te vaag_, too blurry," Justin translated, starting to look upset for the first time that night. "We were in a hotel room, and Wade was there. And then, me and Evan were _bedriegt rond_, and it didn't seem right. I never thought of Evan that way before, and it just all seemed forced, and I remember thinking: _waarom_? Why am I doing this? It's not right, I don't want to, and then there was all this pain and when we woke up and I knew something was wrong, I wasn't me any more, I was so thirsty, like I hadn't had anything to drink for weeks, and there was blood everywhere, and, and, he was sitting there in the corner, grinning like he had won the lottery and said we belonged to him now." Justin broke down closing his eyes and taking deep breaths. Even though he didn't need to do it any more, it still helped calm him down a little. Evan hugged him around the waist and Justin hugged him back, letting his drop to rest on top of Evan's. Justin can feel his fangs against his lips, and even though he knows it's only because he's upset and once he calms down, they'll shrink again. Even though he knows that, it's another reminder of everything he is now and of everything he'll never be again.

"Truth," Chris said in the same hollow voice as before. "He tells the truth."

Chris's eyes are almost all black, but as he comes out of the trance, the color returns to normal; but they don't stay that light blue that Alex loves, they turn black again almost immediately. And when Justin glances at Alex he sees the same thing, and he backs away, swallowing. He's seen that look in a vampire's eyes before -either anger or passion- and in Justin's experience neither one is ever any good for him. He can see the the points of their fangs resting on their bottom lips and he tries to find a corner to hide in with Evan.

Justin glances around the rest of the room and what he sees is enough to stop his heart -if it was still beating.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **OK, so here's Chapter 5. I wanted to write a couple one shots, but the muses had different ideas. After three brawls, a screaming fit and an incident involving Sabin and some of Cody's mirrors, we got everything settled and started on this chapter. It's a little shorter then I had wanted, but what can you do? It's not really short, either, so it should be alright. Hope you guys like.

**A/N2:** Oh, and about that cliffhanger? Yeah, I'd apologize but it wasn't my fault. BB put his foot down and I was in a good mood, so … *shrugs* Besides, he was pouting at me. We all know how I feel about pouting. Enjoy it, peeps.

**A/N3: **I want to thank everyone who's been reviewing and putting this story on alert. You guys give my muses the compliments that they love, and help me to keep writing. Special thanks to **InTheDark34** for talking to me, helping me bounce ideas, laughing at the various antics of our combined muses and just, in general, letting me be me which is often annoying and silly, but he never seems to mind. Oh, and don't worry, I'm sure Evvy'll be back on RAW soon; he just said on his Twitter that it'll be three months top.

Five pairs of glowing eyes stared back at him; two pairs of yellow and two of brown and one of green. Justin remembered Heath had told them once that _weervolven_ eyes switched color right before they Changed, or if they were angry about something.

"Almost any strong emotion can bring on the Change, especially if they're young and their control is shaky," Heath had told them, as they had sat hunched on the bed on the far side of the room. "So, you should always try to keep calm and watch your mouth," this part was said with an affectionate smack on the back of Evan's head. "Never run away from them and always, always be careful the day of the full moon. Even older werewolves have a hard time controlling themselves then."

There was also growling coming from everyone in the room.

Justin very carefully kept his eyes on the floor and after motioning for Evan to do the same, turned his head until his neck was showing. He flinched when he felt a warm hand touch his face, tilting it up so that he was looking into Randy's eyes, which were still green.

"No one's mad at you," Randy said softly, his thumb caressing Justin's cheek. "It's Wade we're pissed at. You didn't do anything. Either one of you." Randy added, glancing at Evan with a small smile. Randy closed his eyes and inhaled Justin's scent, which didn't smell like other vampires to him. It smelled dark and hot, like sex almost.

"But you're eyes." Justin said, barely moving his lips. Randy smiled again before moving and going back over by Ted. "We're pissed," Randy said quietly, a growl still under the surface of his voice. He paused, trying to figure out how to explain. "See, we're -" Randy motioned to encompass the whole room. "All dominant. That means we're supposed to take care of anyone who's not. It's hardwired into our brains, it's instinct."

"It's not only that we want to, we have to," Ted told him. "It's like an impulse that never quite goes away. You always keep an eye out for danger, always quick to listen and check out every noise you hear, just on the off chance that it might belong to someone or something that could hurt anyone under your protection."

"No matter the danger to yourself, you need to protect other people," Adam put in, a small smile curving his lips.

"You'll tear apart anyone who tries to hurt what's yours," Mike went on, his eyes hard. "You know it's your worth your life to help someone."

"And engraved even deeper then that, is the need to protect your mate and beyond everything else: your Alpha. Your Alpha comes above everyone and everything; their life means more to you then your own, then anyone's 'cause without his life, there's no pack. And without pack, there's nothing." Ted finishes, and despite the subject, there's a smile in his eyes as if all that is the best thing to happen to him.

"We're pissed because Wade was supposed to take care of you," Alex said, his body tensing a little. Chris squeezed his thigh with the arm that was still wrapped around it. No one commented on it, but Adam moved and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Alex felt himself relax again; he briefly wondered if he was ever going to get over this, issue he had.

"Turning someone is a huge responsibility," Chris told the newborns, his hand rubbing circles on Alex's leg. "Obviously, Wade needs to be dealt with." Chris was going to go on but a slight movement from Randy changed his mind.

Randy paused for a minute, options going quickly through his mind and dismissed just as quickly. There was no question of the newborns joining the pack, not now. John was already straining to go after Evan. He was tensed and barely under control. If Evan was a wolf, or hell, even a human, John would have dragged him away and locked both of them in an empty room for the next few days. Once that was over, Evan would have to accept the mating for them to bond, and, depending on the people involved, that could take a while, too.

None of them knew how mating to vampire would be different. And they would have to learn how to control themselves and relearn how to hunt before they could go near the rest of the pack. Randy looked at Justin again, his eyes traveling down his body before looking over at Ted, who had a huge grin on his face.

_**They can foster with us,**_ Alex told Randy, Chris murmuring his agreement. _**We're the only ones who can help them right now anyways. **_He added, absently running his hand through Chris's hair.

_**We can help them adjust to the pack, too,**_ Chris put in, leaning into the caress. _**They need to understand about well, everything before they can mingle with anyone else.**_

_**Don't tell Evan about the mating, **_John said suddenly, speaking for the first time in almost an hour. _**I want to do it. He's mine.**_

_**No problem, **_Alex assured him and Randy could hear the shrug in his voice. _**He's going to know about mating, though. Especially since me and Chris are mated.**_

John nodded thoughtfully, accepting this. _**What about you, boss? **_Alex asked, a mischievous gleam in his eye. _**Want us to inform Justin he's stuck with your moody ass for the rest of his life? **_Chris put in, snickering at the thought.

_**I'll do it,**_ Randy told them, not even bothering to deny it. He knew he was mated to the young vampire, knew too that Justin could feel it; even if he wasn't sure what it was. But, it had to be Justin's decision to come to him. That was traditional anyways; but especially with him being Alpha... It was entirely more complicated.

Randy frowned as a sudden thought occurred to him. _**I'm not moody.**_

They started chuckling, shaking their heads at him. Randy allowed himself a small smile before looking back at the newborns. He looked them over once last time while he made plans in his head.

"You're going to foster with Shelley and Sabin," Randy told the newborns, pausing to see if they objected. When they didn't he nodded ; he hadn't thought that they would say anything. "They'll help with your control and teach you how to hunt without killing someone."

Justin nodded, relieved; at least they were still alive. Evan also nodded, a little more slowly then Justin had, his eyes never leaving John.

Randy turned to go, calling out orders as he left. "Mike, John, stay and guard the area. Ted, Adam, with me." After bidding the older vampires goodbye, they left, chatting like normal.

Justin followed them, unable to help himself. He peeked out the front window, gasping slightly at the sight in the front yard.

Five wolves the size of small ponies played in the front yard. Pouncing on each other and play fighting. After a minute the black one pulled away with the one who had brown hair tipped in white -he knew they were Randy and Ted, respectively; he remembered from earlier- with another black wolf, only this one had white paws. That one must be Adam, Justin thought to himself. But which one was Adam?

Justin licked his lips nervously as he tried to decide if he should ask any questions of these vampires. They were supposed to be his _onderwysers_, surely they would expect him to ask questions.

"Um, _onderwyser_, which one was Adam?" Justin asks hesitantly, his body half braced for a punch or kick. After exchanging looks with Alex, Chris walked over by the newborns while Alex dashed upstairs to check on rooms for the younger vampires.

"Adam's the blonde, well, the blonde with the long hair." Chris answered, careful to keep his voice light and not make any sudden movements. Justin nodded and went back to looking out the window.

Two wolves stayed in front of the house, looking at each other for a minute before turning and running in opposite directions.

"The gray wolf with the black ears and muzzle is Mike," Chris went on, stepping up to look outside with Justin -and Evan who had crept up to look with Justin. "Mike's the one who uh," Chris stopped for a second, trying to think of how to describe Mike. "He's the one who was smirking the whole time, right?" Evan asked, something about the way the gray wolf looked at the house before leaving had reminded Evan of the smug wolf who never stopped smirking.

Chris smiled again, brighter this time as he thought of the complicated mess that was Mike. "Yeah, that's him. And the last one, the light brown one is John. He was the brunette, the one who barely talked." Chris finished, mentally rolling his eyes when he thought of it and the reason John had been so silent.

"John." Evan repeated softly, his hand against the window. Almost as if he heard Evan, the light brown wolf paused, looking back at the house for minute before he turned and disappeared from sight.

Justin watched where Randy had gone into the woods with the others. As he thought about the way Randy had touched his face before, it occurred to him that maybe the rest of his life wasn't going to turn out as bad as he had originally thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N1: **Well, here we go guys, Chapter 6. Sorry it took so long to get this one out, peeps. My muses were on strike for awhile -I think it was all the eggnog *snickers*- but now they decided they wanted to get on with the story. 'Santa' -Cody and Jeffy are still convinced he's real; the poor delusional bastards- stopped by and got everyone something, so everyone is in a good mood and they stopped playing with their toys long enough to pay attention to business. Hope everyone had a good holiday, and if not, I hope this helps you feel a little better.

**A/N2:** Oh, before I forget: this chapter is gonna be where we start going between the characters a lot more. Like, I'll write some of the vamps and it'll switch to Randy and so on. Depending on how it ends up coming out, it might stay like this for the rest of the story. Let me know what you think, peeps.

**A/N3: **Thanks, as always, to everyone who's read, reviewed and put this story on favorite and alert. I'm glad you guys like reading it as much as I like writing it. My muses are basking in all the compliments and pretty soon their egos are gonna be bigger then Jerky's. Could you imagine the insanity if that happened? LoL. Special thanks- **InTheDark34 **here on fanfiction: Thanks, chico, for the usual and stuff. You were right; that play ring did help, lmfao.

As they went into the forest Randy let his mind wander briefly back to Justin. It wasn't in his nature to be insecure; he had proven to himself and others over and over again that he was, very simply, the best. He had to be; if he wasn't the pack would be the ones who would ultimately lose.

No, it wasn't his nature to be insecure, but still he found himself wondering if Justin would even want to be with him. If he did accept the mating and they bonded, then Justin would be almost as important to the pack as Randy would be. Despite the heat between them, he might not want -

_**Christ, Randy, you need to calm the hell down,**_ Ted said bluntly from where he was running on Randy's right side. Adam put his ears down briefly. As both Randy's second and his oldest friend, Ted talked to Randy the way others wouldn't even dream of. It was all said with respect, of course, and that's why Randy would even think to tolerate it but it still geeked Adam out once in a while. He would never have thought to talk to Randy that way, no matter how long he knew him.

_**He's gonna love ya and ya guys are gonna be happy and all that shit, **_Ted continued. _**The pack is gonna be fine.**_

_**How do you know that?**_ Randy asked, chuckling despite himself. Ted could, inevitably, amuse him.

_**That's easy; I know everything and I'm fucken awesome. **_Ted said easily, laughing.

_**You spend too much time with Mike. **_Randy told him, as they ran through the woods towards where they were keeping Griffin.

They didn't use it often enough to give it a name. It was an old log cabin in the very middle of their inner territory that just happened to have an cast iron cage that was overlaid with silver. They used it on the rare times that someone needed to be punished severely enough to warrant being locked up.

To outsiders that would seem like nothing; like a timeout maybe, but there was nothing the wolf hated more then to be caged in.

It felt like the world had shrunk down, you could barely breathe without feeling like you were touching the bars of the cage. Every where you looked it was just steel and walls; no sky, no grass, nothing. Every breathe you took made it feel like the walls were getting closer, until it felt like you couldn't move any more.

Ted rubbed his head against against Randy's shoulder and Adam butted against his side. Randy wagged his tail in silent gratitude before putting his mind back toward the problem at hand; Griffin.

He had decided that he would have to be executed. Randy wished it wasn't necessary but what Griffin had done was monstrous and it went against everything he believed in. He would check in on him to make sure everything was going fine and then he was going to try to get some rest. A picture of Justin bounced into his head and he groaned even as Ted laughed.

_**Welcome to the club, Randy. **_Ted said, wagging his tail and nudging Randy's side with his nose.

As they got closer to the cabin, Adam's ears perked up and he whined happily, eager to see Jay again. He could feel Ted and Randy's amusement, but neither one of them said anything to him about it.

When they pulled up even with the cabin, Jay had come outside to meet them, leaving Alex inside with Griffin. Randy Changed, going to talk to Jay before he headed inside. Jay greeted his Alpha and then Ted before turning to his mate. They grinned at each other before Jay turned back to Randy.

"Everything quiet?" Randy asked, even though he knew if anything had happened he would have heard about it. "Of course," Jay answered, smiling a little. "He's still sleeping. Doesn't look like he'll be up for a while yet." Randy nodded, glancing around before facing Jay again.

"Did Adam fill you in?" "On what? The fact that you and John both got mated in the same day? Or the fact that they're vampires?" Jay grinned, raising an eyebrow. Randy looked at Adam, who just smiled and shrugged.

"Yeah, something like that," Randy answered. "Let's try and keep it between us for now." Jay nodded, still grinning. "I'll let Mike know he can tell Alex later," Randy continued, knowing Ted would tell Cody as soon as he got back to the house if he hadn't already. "Other then that, I don't want anyone to know yet." "No problem, Randy. I got you."

Randy shook his head and headed for the door. "Adam, Jay, stay and...guard the perimeter." Randy ordered, a half smile on his face. Ted chuckled and followed Randy into the cabin, leaving the mated pair outside.

Adam smiled and closed in on Jay, crowding him against the side of the building. Jay smiled up at him, putting his hands on Adam's hips. Adam leaned down, nuzzling Jay's throat. "God, I love the way you smell, Angel." Adam said, nibbling on Jay's neck. "Hmmm," Jay said, turning his head to give Adam better access.

"So, what are they like?" Jay asked, his eyes drifting close briefly as Adam bit his ear. He flicked is tongue out to soothe the small mark before pulling back to answer Jay's question.

"Like vampires," Adam answered, dropping a kiss on Jay's lips. He sighed when he saw the look on Jay's face; his eyes were glowing and they were already starting to change color, but underneath the lust was a distinct level of annoyance starting to build.

Adam knew he could get Jay's mind off of the newborns; they were mates and had been mated for twenty years; he knew every spot on Jay's body, knew exactly how to drive him crazy. But he also knew Jay would be pissed at him after the fact and he really wasn't up to more fighting today. Plus, Adam had a hard time not giving Jay whatever he wanted.

"Justin reminds me of Cody, a little," Adam said, shifting so that he could run a hand a hand down Jay's side until he hit the waistband of his jeans. "He's pretty like Codes is," when Jay just arched an eyebrow, Adam grinned and ran a finger under the waistband of his jeans. "But he's not as happy as Cody, he's more serious. Uh, grown up, I want to say."

Jay sighed and moved his hand to trace Adam's six pack with his index finger. "He hasn't really had a reason to be happy, Addy. Imagine being Turned without wanting it." Jay shuddered, looking worried for a minute. Adam leaned down and gave Jay a kiss, reminding him that he was there and that he would never let anything hurt him.

He smiled again, reaching up and wrapping some blonde hair around his finger. "What about John's vampire?" Adam smirked and Jay could feel his amusement through the mating bond. "Oh, Cena's in for it, alright. Evan's a smart ass. And he's got no respect for authority; Ted had to beat some into him." "A smart ass?" Jay repeated mockingly. "How ever will he deal?"

Adam just chuckled; he hoped Evan fucked up Cena's world -in the best possible way. Cena was one of his closest friends but hell, he had a stick up his ass. And Adam had been serious when he called John a prude earlier. It was said laughingly, and with affection, because John was really one of the best people Adam had ever met, but it was true. Especially for a wolf.

Even before wolves made the Change for the first time, their sight, hearing and sense of smell were better then a human's. Which meant that there were a lot of things wolves learned about before human children did. Added to the fact that most wolves Changed for the first time by their teens and it kicked your libido into over drive. A lot of times it didn't calm down until you were mated and, even then, it was more of focusing on one person.

"Teddy didn't hurt him, did he?" Jay asked softly, still running his hand over Adam's abs and up his chest. Adam rolled his eyes; Jay was the only one besides Cody who ever got away with calling Ted 'Teddy'. "No, Angel. Ted disciplined him the same way he would a teenager; Randy warned him about his mouth, though." Adam leaned in again and started placing kisses along Jay's jaw. "Will you take me to go see them?" Jay asked, his eyes drifting close again. Adam paused for a minute, mentally arguing both sides before he answered. "Maybe tomorrow. I need to check to see when I'm relieving Mike. I'll bring you by then," Adam told him, deciding the danger involved was minimal. "Now, can we do something besides talk?"

Adam moved down Jay's neck until he was at his pulse point. He placed a gentle kiss there before he bit Jay hard enough to leave a bruise. Jay moaned, his knees giving slightly. Adam smirked before catching Jay's lips in a bruising kiss, his tongue sweeping inside to stake a claim that was already his. Jay moaned again, moving his hands until he was resting his hands against Adam's nipples. Jay raked his nails down Adam's chest, hard enough to leave thin red trails. Adam growled, his eyes yellow when he pulled back to see Jay's face. Jay growled back at Adam, his eyes just as wild, before shoving Adam away from him.

Jay smirked at his mate. "Gotta catch me first," he taunted before running into the woods as fast as he could. Adam stared after him, a feral smile curling his lips.

_**Ted, can-**_

_**Go ahead,**_ Ted told him, a smile in his voice. _**I got Randy.**_

Adam chased after Jay, the same smile still on his face. Oh, his Angel was going to get it when he caught up to him.

John circled the vampires house, going to sit on the front porch. He tilted his head to the side, debating if he should go inside or not. He had never really expected to be in this position; he had always assumed if he ever found his mate, it would be another wolf. Even a human, maybe. But a vampire? And a male, too. John had nothing against it, but he always thought he would mate with a girl. He liked guys, but he always went for girls first.

Now, he here was, mated to a male vampire. John was never one to dwell on things he couldn't change and this was no exception. He just wasn't sure where to go from here.

_**Stop being a pussy, **_Mike told him from where he was running the perimeter. _**Fucken go in there and at least talk to the kid.**_

John just ignored him; Mike always had an attitude about everything. Mike was pack, he was family and that meant John would give his life for Mike's if it came down to it, but they had never been really close. They were just too different; John knew there was a lot going on with Mike that most people -including him- didn't get to see, but he could never bring himself to try to get closer to the other wolf. As for Mike, he seemed content to have a few close friends -Alex, Ted, Shelley and Sabin for the most part- and let John go his own way.

Pushing Mike out of his mind, John concentrated on Evan. After staring at the door, he went over and laid down on the corner of the porch where he could keep an eye on the front door in case anyone tried to get in or out. He circled a couple times before he was comfortable and watched the door until Mike came back and it was John's turn to run perimeter.

Mike mentally rolled his eyes. He couldn't believe how passive John was being in this. If he ever got mated, which, honestly, Mike didn't see happening, but if it did, he would chase after them until he caught them and he wouldn't let them go. Just sitting there, waiting, was not Mike Mizanin's style. Hell, it wasn't in his genetic make up. So whoever that mysterious mate ended up being, they were going to get the surprise of their lives when they meant him.

For some reason at the thought of a mate, Alex's face drifted through his mind but Mike just shrugged it off as Ted's fault for the suggestion earlier.

Mike yawned, his stomach rumbling as he completed the pass and headed back towards the house. He stopped his ears twitching when he heard leaves moving. The wind shifted and the smell of deer hit his nose, making his stomach even louder. Mike howled, letting the note fall halfway through, so that John would know he was going hunting if he wanted to join.

When there was no answering call, Mike just shrugged and started tracking the deer. That just meant more food for him. Let John sit and pout if he wanted. Even as he thought that, Mike knew he was lying; he would eat his fill, sure, but he would bring some back to John so he could eat without leaving the porch. He and John might not be friends, but they were pack and that meant more then anything else.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Here's chapter 7, peeps. Before I go any further, I just wanna say thank you to everyone who's read this story on livejournal & fanfiction. I appreciate it so much. Especially: candy_belle , you are awesome, hun. Seriously. Just awesome. You've even started getting my muses going with random conversations! And I'm gonna get you back for that belt idea; it's now top on my list after I'm done with this chapter. LoL. And: energy_purple, your feedback is always crazy supportive and just makes me want to write more. And, of course, InTheDark34. As always, you help me just by talking and being there. Everyone who reads this on fanfiction should go to his profile and check out the poll he's got going on there. Hope everyone likes this chapter. Enjoy.

**A/N2: **So, the muses are still loving this. I'm surprised, to be honest; usually they get bored pretty quickly but they're still digging this, so, yay for us. This chapter is pretty heavy on the vampires. Not that anyone's complaining, huh? Originally, this was supposed to be only a little vamp action in the beginning before going to something else. But BB demanded face time and then he started pouting at me. And Christian was whining and he wouldn't shut the hell up, then Randy was glaring and Edge was getting that look in his eyes and I couldn't take it, so I caved on all accounts. Anyways, here it be, peeps.

Justin sat on the porch, Evan next to him and Alex and Chris across from him.

"To help yourself, you need to remember the hierarchy," Chris told them, smiling slightly. Evan rolled his eyes but didn't say anything. Alex snickered, shaking his head. "You start at the top: the Alpha. Whatever Randy tells you to do, you do it. Without question. If you do question him, it's an insult. Depending on the Alpha, and the insult, you can get anything from a verbal lashing to a severe beating."

"The main thing to remember is to always show respect," Alex continued, inclining his head toward the gray wolf that was circling their house. Justin also caught Mike running past the house; he wondered why him and John were both keeping such a close eye on the vampires.

He had asked both his _onderwysers _and it was the only question they didn't answer. Alex had just smirked and shared a look with Chris before changing the subject.

"Whenever you walk into the room, you _always_ greet the highest ranking wolf first," Alex went on, before motioning Justin to go on. Justin took a second to think it over; Mike trotted into the yard before stretching and then flopping on the ground to soak up some sun.

"Shouldn't you be doing something, fat ass?" Chris asked, raising an eyebrow.

_**Fuck off,**_ Mike told him lazily, not even bothering to move. _**Cena's making the rounds instead of manning up and talking to Evan. I'm taking a nap until Adam comes up.**_

_**Shut it, Mike,**_ Cena growled, meaning business. Mike just yawned, clearly not impressed by the implied threat.

_**Stop being such a fucken pussy and I wouldn't have to rag on you so much,**_ Mike pointed out before falling seemingly asleep.

"Go on." Chris encouraged Justin, smiling slightly at the thoughtful look on Justin's face. Chris and Alex had both seen the way Justin noticed them 'talking' to each other and the pack.

_**Randy is going to have fun with him, **_Alex told his mate gleefully, having caught the gist of Chris's thoughts through their bond.

"Um, Randy, Ted, and then," Justin hesitated. "The Three; but who do I greet first?" Justin finally asked, momentarily letting his confusion show. "Technically, they all have the same place in rank," Chris told him. "So, it doesn't really matter; just greet whoever you feel comfortable with first. Now, do you know who to greet when anyone's mated?"

"You greet whoever the highest ranking is and then their mate before you move on," Evan said absently, glancing around the yard. "So, Randy, then Ted and then Cody -is that right?" Chris nodded, watching in amusement as Evan searched for John.

"As far as Alpha's go, Randy is pretty laid back," Alex told them, catching a glimpse of John out of the corner of his eye. "He's secure enough to understand that questions aren't always a bad thing." "But even Randy can only let so much slide before he has to punish you," Chris warned, hoping all the lessons weren't too confusing. "Always talk to him with respect. _Always. _Never forget that if he was a different kind of Alpha, you would be dead -"

_**For good this time,**_ Mike added, snickering even though only Chris and Alex could hear him.

"This may not be the life you wanted," Alex picked up Chris's sentence, a dark look in his eyes. "But it's the one you have now. I know it feels like you're cursed, like you're a monster," Alex lowered his eyes briefly, taking comfort in Chris's hand on his ankle and the brief nuzzle against his shoulder before Mike laid down again.

"But from here on out, you're in charge of what you do, where you go, who you _are_. It's all on you." Alex finished, letting the silence carry for a minute.

"Can I ask you guys something?" Evan questioned suddenly, looking away from the yard. "Ten inches." Alex answered seriously, smirking a little. Evan looked confused for a minute, he ducked his head in embarrassment while Chris snickered and Justin just smiled. There was a strange huffing noise coming from where Mike was laying down and Justin realized the gray wolf was laughing with them.

_**You fucken wish, **_Mike told him. _**We all know who the ten incher is here -and it's not you. **_

"Like you even remember how big yours is," Alex scoffed, grinning at his friend. "When's the last time you got a piece, anyway?" Mike flattened his ears and playfully snapped at Alex's arm before going to sit on the porch next to Chris.

"Um," Evan said uncertainly, not really sure how to act around these people. "You guys are mated, right?" Evan asked once Chris had looked at him. "Yeah." Chris answered, unable to stop the soft half smile that crossed his mouth at the thought. "For how long?" Evan asked, an uneasy look on his face. "I just – I'm curious." "Almost fifty years." Alex answered, raising an eyebrow at the amazed look on both of the newborns faces.

"That's almost forever," Evan whispered, glancing around the yard again. "I can't even imagine it."

_**He'd better start,**_ Mike commented, tilting his head to look at both the young vampires. _**I wonder if he's as big a prude as Cena.**_

_**If you don't shut up, **_John threatened.

_**You'll do what? Bore me to death? **_Mike snorted and both Justin and Evan jumped a little at the noise, warily watching the wolf.

"He's going to kick your ass one day." Alex informed his friend, laughing. Mike just looked smug -which, Justin thought, was quite a feat for a wolf but he managed to pull it off.

Mike moved his ear toward the woods that surrounded them before barking once and bounding off. "Adam's here," Alex commented, standing up and stretching, running a hand through his hair as he turned to look out at the three wolves currently rough housing in the yard. "He brought Jay, too." Chris added.

"Why do they do that?" Justin asked as the wolves continued to play. "It reestablishes the bonds of pack," Chris answered as one of the black wolves dodged Mike and headed toward the house. When the wolf got close to the house, he crouched down, tail wagging and pounced on Alex, knocking him over.

"Get off of me, flea bag," Alex laughed, shoving the wolf and then lunging at him, taking both of them down the steps and spilling into the front yard. The duo scuffled around for a few minutes, Alex pulling him into a headlock; the wolf growling and snapping at Alex's side.

"It strengthens the ties of pack, of family," Chris tried to explained something that was more felt then known. "Let's you know you're not alone, not ever. I can't really explain it," he told Justin and Evan, who had come and stood next to them. "You'll understand soon."

Justin raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. Considering that he had only known them for not even two days, he was strangely reluctant to leave, and he told himself firmly that it had nothing to do with Randy.

Alex walked over with the black wolf at his side. This wolf had white paws and when he looked at Justin and Evan, they could see one brown eye and one yellow. There was something familiar about the tilt to the head and just the over all shape of him, that made Justin think he knew him.

"Is that Adam?" Justin asked softly, being careful not to look the wolf in the eyes for too long. Chris hesitated for a second, glancing to where Adam and Mike were jogging over to them. "No, that's his mate, Jay." Alex answered, dropping a hand down to scratch Jay's ear.

_**So, that's Randy's vampire, **_Jay said, running his eyes over Justin. _**Not bad. How's it going so far?**_

_**Good, **_Alex answered, smiling when Adam came and stood next to Jay, rubbing his shoulder against his mate's; Mike standing on the other side of Alex.

"They look so much alike." Evan said in disbelief, looking in between the two wolves.

_**Jay wants to hang out with you guys while I'm running perimeter, **_Adam informed them, backing up a little so Jay could Change. Alex moved as well, going to lounge on the steps.

It still _baie bang_ _hom uit_ to see Alex out in the sun. Chris and Alex had both explained to them that they wouldn't catch on fire if they went out during the day; it would just tire them out, they would be weaker until the sun went down.

Wade had told them that they would burn if they went out in the sun; Justin knew, now, that it was just another way Wade was trying to control them. After hearing something everyday, it was difficult to ignore it; even when you knew it wasn't true.

Justin focused back on the present and saw that a lanky blonde was sitting on the ground next to Adam. He rubbed a hand over Adam's head, smiling when Adam sniffed his shoulder and then licked the side of his face.

"Go on, Addy, I'll be fine," Jay told his mate, getting to his feet after he gave Adam a hug. "No one's going to hurt me here; you're going to be within shouting distance, Shelley and Sabin are both here and I can take care of myself. I'll be fine." Adam ducked his head, and Justin could have sworn there was a sheepish look in his eyes.

_**Sorry, Angel,**_ Adam apologized, rubbing his head against Jay's side. _**I can't help it. Call if you need me. Where's John at? **_He asked Mike as they turned to go; Adam going to relieve John and Mike to check in with Randy before he headed home.

_**Probably off sulking some where, **_Mike told him, sounding indifferent when John snarled at him. _**Hey, don't be pissed at me 'cause you're too much of a chicken shit to even **__**talk**__** to him. **_

_**I fucken hate you, **_John growled as Mike headed towards Randy's. _**I want you to know that. Seriously.**_

_**Ouch. You've wounded me for life. **_Mike told him as he disappeared into the trees. _**Later, guys.**_

_**I'll take the perimeter; go talk to him already, **_Adam told John as he started the loop around the house.

John snorted and trotted toward the house, slowing when he saw they were still standing outside; Jay bullshitting with Justin and Evan, making the newborns laugh. Sabin and Shelleywere a few feet away, talking in low tones about something.

John watched Jay say something to Evan, slapping the newborn on the back when he looked down in embarrassment. Jay grinned at Evan before ruffling his hair.

Watching as Jay continued talking to both Evan and Justin, John could feel himself getting jealous. It was ridiculous, he knew that; but he couldn't help it. Jay was leaning against the porch railing, with _no clothes on_.

John took a deep breath, trying to focus himself. He walked slowly toward the house, trying to control himself. He could do this; he would just go over there, Change and then talk to him. It wasn't rocket science, he wasn't a moron. He could do this.

Evan noticed the light brown wolf headed toward them and immediately lost track of what Jay and Justin were talking about. He could feel a mix of nerves and excitement even as he told himself to relax; obviously John was just coming over to talk to his friend. He'd been ignoring them since they had got there, it didn't make sense for him to suddenly pay attention now.

Jay saw Evan watching John and John stop about halfway to the porch before he sat down and stare at the porch. Rolling his eyes, he shoved Evan toward John, smiling innocently when the vampire turned and glared at him.

"What?" Justin chuckled at the look on Evan's face but when he turned back toward John, the wolf was gone. Evan's face fell and Jay sighed, patting him on the back. "He had to run to help Adam," Jay lied, wanting to strangle John. "He'll be back later, I'm sure."

_**You need to beat some sense into that moron before it's too late, **_Jay told his mate, his exasperation obvious. _**Tell him to get his ass over here, pin Evan between the nearest hard surface and his body and fucken stop being so god damn emo about everything.**_

_**Maybe I'll just have Mike annoy him until he gives in, **_Adam chuckled, pausing to get a drink out of a stream. _**'Course, they'd both probably end up dead, so I better just do it.**_

Jay nodded, happier now that Addy had promised to take care of things. Glancing over at Sabin and Shelley, he snickered when Sabin backed Shelley up against the cabin and started nibbling on his neck.

"Hey, we're going for a walk, Jay," Sabin announced, pulling back from Shelley. "Watch the kids, OK?" He promptly dragged Shelley through the trees without waiting for answer.

"Hey." Justin and Evan both protested, frowning. "Aw, come on, kiddos, let's get something to eat." Jay announced, throwing his arms around their shoulders and steering them into the house.

"We can't eat, remember?" Evan asked grumpily, still upset by John's sudden departure. Justin reached around behind Jay and smacked Evan in the back of the head. Evan rubbed his head and glared at Justin. "We're supposed to go hunting tomorrow." Justin said, ignoring Evan.

"Well, you can watch me and I'll show you two how to make the perfect steak; it's a skill you'll need in the near future." Jay informed them, walking in the front door.

"How did you even know they had food?" Justin asked curiously as they made their way into the kitchen. "Mike spends a lot of time here and that fucker is _always_ hungry," Jay answered, going to the fridge and pulling out a few steaks before grabbing seasonings from the cabinet and turning back to the newborns. "Alright, kids, here we go."

Mike walked into his house, dragging a little. He had stopped by to see Randy, who had told hi to go home. Ted was keeping an eye on Griffin with Cody to help him and Randy promised to call one of them if he went any where.

He could smell Alex all over but that wasn't a surprise; Alex spent more time here then at his own place. His wolf was used to the scent and he loved having Alex around.

Walking into his room, he was only half surprised to find Alex passed out in his bed with the TV still on. His room was the only one that had a TV and DVD player, so it was normal for him to come in here and find Alex sleeping instead of in the guest room.

When he turned the TV off, Alex made a little snoring noise and rolled over onto his other side. Mike went over and tried to shake him awake but gave up after a few minutes. He was too tired to try and drag Alex into the other room. He just collapsed face down onto the bed and was out in a matter of minutes.

Once he was sure Mike was sleeping, Alex opened his eyes and looked at Mike. Smirking, he moved closer to his best friend, draping an arm over his upper back and throwing a leg over Mike's. He snuggled his nose into Mike's neck, inhaling his scent. He was tired of waiting for Mike to get a clue; it was time to get this done his way.

With that last thought, Alex closed his eyes and fell asleep, wrapped around the man he'd loved since they were teenagers.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **So, here's Chapter 8. The muses are still going strong, lol. Still not quite sure how long this is gonna be. I mean, I know how it's gonna end, but not how long it's gonna take to get there. The muses are acting very suspiciously, though. Usually they're fighting and yelling over who's doing what and when; but now they're asking nicely and taking turns. *narrows eyes* That's not normal; I got my eyes on you, muses.

**A/N2:** Thanks, again, to everyone who's reading this and leaving feedback. I appreciate it so much, and my muses are thriving on it. Special thanks to the usual suspects: candy_belle, for loving this story almost as much as I do, for bull-shitting with me when I can't write and drooling over MMG pics with me. My other muses are getting jealous, though, so I might have to do a few posts with them before I do another one of MMG. *rolls eyes* Jealous fuckers. Oh, and I got a surprise for ya, hun. See if ya can find it. energy_purple, your feedback is always great, and the last chapter was no exception. My muses -especially Shelley and Sabin- always preen when I read it, and it motivates me to get started on the next chapter. InTheDark34, you always manage to make me smile, no matter how aggravated I am, and you always let me bounce ideas off of you. Gracious, chico.

Mike stirred a little, turning into the person laying next to him. Part of him was already awake, already assessing every noise, every smell for danger but the rest of him was still half asleep. Still relaxed enough to wonder but not worry about who he was laying next to. His wolf was calm and happy; whoever it was, it was someone his wolf knew and trusted, and that was enough for him right now.

He moved closer, his nose rubbing against someones throat. Mike moved his arm until it was wrapped around their waist and he could feel the hard muscles under the soft skin. Male, his mind told him, but even that wasn't enough to wake him up all the way.

Mike inhaled the scent that was surrounding him, his mouth pressing against the skin by him, leaving open mouthed kisses all along Alex's throat.

Mike froze and his eyes popped open. Alex. He was wrapped around his best friend, and _he was naked_. It had never bothered him before, but now he could feel his heart starting to trip up. Mike closed his eyes and started moving away, but Alex reached an arm out and hauled Mike back against him, a low, contented rumble coming from his chest.

Mike still hesitated, unsure if he should pull away. If he wanted, he could break Alex's hold in a few seconds; he was stronger then Alex, more dominant. Not very, but even a little was enough to make the difference in their world.

After a minute, Mike relaxed. After all, Alex was his best friend. He could cuddle with his best friend. He closed his eyes and he could feel his wolf stretching and yawning, content to be here with Alex. He refused to analyze it beyond right now; he was sleepy, comfortable and for the first time his wolf was just as happy laying next to someone as he was.

Alex cracked open his eyes, peering down at Mike. He allowed himself a small smirk; things were going as well as he planned. He knew Mike as well as he knew himself. He knew once Mike made up his mind about something, it usually stayed that way. And Mike had made up his mind that they were friends -best friends, but still only friends.

Alex had known since he was thirteen that Mike was the only person he wanted to be with. There had been other people, men and women, but none of them had ever even come close to the wolf laying next to him. And because he knew Mike so well, Alex knew to get what he wanted, he had to make it Mike's idea. Mike was dominant to him and that meant Mike needed to be the one chasing him.

Closing his eyes again, Alex moaned a little and then shifted so he was on his side, facing away from Mike. Without any hesitation, Mike followed him; throwing an arm around around Alex's waist and working a leg in between his. Cuddling against Alex's back, rubbing his nose against the back of Alex's neck, Mike took the dominant position, his back to the room and his body curled around Alex's protectively.

Alex smiled; he could hear Mike mumbling to himself and he knew everything was going to work out the way he wanted. Mike wanted him the same way he wanted Mike; he just didn't want to admit it.

It was going to be interesting when Mike realized what was going on.

Randy stood on his back porch, his hands on the railing, looking around at his yard. His house was huge; a sprawling four bedroom that been in his family since his grandfather was alive. He wondered sometimes why his grandfather had built such a big house; there had never been that many Orton's running around at one time. He had been an only child, and while there had been a couple wolves who had stayed with them -his cousin and Ted- for the most part it had been just him and his parents.

And now it was just him.

Ted and Cody still stayed over once in a while, but ever since his mother had left and his Dad had gone roaming, he was usually by himself.

He closed his eyes and he could picture Justin, lounging on the back porch with him while they watched the stars come out. Justin under him in bed-

Randy growled and forced the image out of his head. Taking deep breaths, he got himself under control. He couldn't afford to lose it now; especially with Griffin's execution hanging over his head. It would be done by the next full moon, and he decided it would be done in front of the full pack. Including the teenagers; especially the older ones.

He had heard about the way they talked about Griffin, some of them going as far as to say that Griffin had the right idea about humans. Maybe Randy couldn't make them understand that humans weren't prey, maybe he couldn't even make them understand that humans could hurt them.

But there was one thing Randy could do: he could make them afraid of him, so afraid that they wouldn't even think of ignoring his orders. And to do that, he would need an example. Lucky him, that Griffin had done what he had. For once, Griffin would be useful to him.

Turning his back on the scene before him, Randy set his shoulders and prepared to do his job as Alpha.

"Come on, Ted, just one drink." Griffin whined, his eyes darting around the cage he was in. It was big enough that he could stand and walk around if he wanted to but instead he was huddled in the corner, desperation rolling off of him in waves.

Ted raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. He was well aware that if he went near the cage, Griffin would try to attack him in an attempt to get out. It wouldn't happen; in the first place Ted wasn't that stupid, and secondly even if Griffin managed to get his hands on him, it would only take seconds for Ted to get loose. Ted might be easy going most of the time, but he didn't become Randy's second because of his smile.

"Why would I do that?" Ted asked, tilting his head as he heard Randy approaching the cabin with four other wolves. He frowned slightly; he recognized Mike and Alex, but he couldn't quite place the other two. Ted could also hear Cody coming in the back door.

"Hey, Baby Boy, feel better?" Ted asked as Cody walked over to him. Cody nodded, snuggling into his side without saying anything. When he flicked a look to the cage, Ted realized Griffin being there was still bothering him.

_**Are ya sure you're OK? **_Ted asked his mate, breathing in his scent; it was a light, fresh scent that always made him think of home first and then right on the heels of that, sex.

_**Yeah, I'm fine, Teddy, **_Cody assured him, leaning into Ted as he petted Cody's hair. _**Griffin just makes me nervous.**_

_**Well, he won't be around for much longer, **_Ted soothed him, dropping a quick kiss on the top of Cody's head. _**Randy's on his way; he brought Mike and Alex with him.**_

"Well, isn't that adorable," Griffin sneered, his brown eyes wide and unfocused. "So cute. No wonder you took him when you did, DiBiase."

Ted only smirked but anyone familiar with him would see the beginnings of that infamous DiBiase temper in his eyes. Ted didn't brawl very often, but when he did it was always memorable. And he always won.

"Better hope I don't get out of here," he went on, his eyes darting around the whole room. "There's a better chance of me becoming a monk." Ted drawled. "If I do, maybe I'll get a taste of him." Griffin taunted him, grinning and licking his lips.

Cody paled and instinctively stepped behind Ted. Ted snarled, his eyes turning yellow and his claws flashing out. "That'll never happened. In the first place, Randy's gonna massacre ya in the near future and even if hell froze over and ya managed to escape that, ya would never be able to touch Cody," Ted spit out, his voice filled with barely contained rage.

"'Cause you're fucken pathetic," Ted continued when the other wolf didn't say anything. "Ya hunt humans 'cause you're too fucken weak to kill something that's as strong as ya."

"Enough." Randy walked into the room with Mike on his left side and Alex behind him. Two other wolves behind Alex, both of them looking slightly nervous. Ted immediately dropped his eyes and turned his head so that his neck was bared; Cody followed, his hand snaking out to rest on Ted's lower back.

Randy walked past Ted, touching his shoulder. It was enough to relax Ted, though, and he stepped into his place on Randy's right, with Cody behind him.

"Griffin." It was said with pity and a quiet disdain.

"Randy." The younger wolf snarled, staring into Randy's eyes. It was a blatant insult, but it just made Randy raise an eyebrow and stare back. Griffin was only able to hold Randy's gaze for a handful of seconds before he had to look away.

"Let me out of here," Griffin snapped when Randy didn't say anything. "You have no right to do this to me."

"You killed humans indiscriminately; that's against our laws." Randy told him, his voice cold. Cody shivered and moved closer to Ted's back.

"Fuck the law! We should be able to do what we want to them!" Griffin roared, his face turning red. "My mother was human." Randy reminded him, his voice bland. Mike could hear the underlying anger and even though the smirk stayed on his face he was very glad that he wasn't Griffin.

"I always thought you didn't deserve to be Alpha." Griffin sneered, rising to his feet and walking toward the front of the cage. Even as far gone as he was, Griffin was careful to stay away from the silver bars of the cage.

Randy didn't say anything, but his temper snapped. His power rolled through the room, filling it with crackling energy. It threw the lower wolves to their knees; Cody dropped, whimpering. He wrapped his arm around Ted's leg and Ted moved his hand to Cody's hair but his face stayed impassive.

Mike shuddered but stayed upright; Alex fell to his knees, moving his hand to grip Mike's calf. Josh and Dan were both on there hands and knees, pained whimpers coming from their throats.

_**Ted, what happened? **_Adam asked, his voice hard.

_**Do you need us?**_ John added, sounding pained.

Randy using his power this way was a red flag to them; they knew when Randy was throwing around power like that usually meant a fight and that meant he needed all his muscle with him.

_**No, we're fine. Randy's having a talk with Griffin, **_Ted told them, his teeth gritted as Randy let more power free.

Griffin was curled into a ball on the floor, crying; he had no pack bond to lean on, no mate to draw comfort from. He had made his choice months ago, and now he had to live with the consequences.

Randy strode forward, Ted and Mike shadowing his movement. Cody tried to follow but it was too much for him, he couldn't. Alex reached over and grabbed his hand, offering him the ties of pack while his mate wasn't there. Cody moved closer, desperately needing the comfort, so Alex wrapped an arm around his shoulder and dragged him the rest of the way until Cody was against his side.

Josh and Dan both crawled until they were pressed against Alex's other side and his back, instinctively seeking the most dominant wolf that was close to them

"Come here." Randy said, his voice soft. Griffin shook his head, scrambling until he was back against the wall.

"Now." Randy ordered, his voice echoing with power. Griffin crawled toward him slowly, against his will.

When he was close enough, Randy reached an arm in between the bars and dragged Griffin by the shirt until his face was pressed against the silver bars. Griffin screamed, clawing at Randy's arm, trying to get away.

"You stalked and killed humans like they were deer; you insult all wolves with your behavior," Randy told Griffin, watching dispassionately as the silver burned into his face. "For these crimes, you will be executed at the next full moon, before the whole pack."

With those last words, Randy moved Griffin away from the bats and then used his full strength to slam him face first into the bars. Griffin passed out, knocked unconscious. Randy dropped him, turning to stare at the wolves in the room with him.

Taking a deep breath, he brought his power back under control, drawing it back into his body. He put a hand to both Ted and Mike's backs, trying to convoy his thanks without words.

Ted and Mike both wrapped an arm around his waist and rested their heads against his, acknowledging his burden as Alpha. Stepping his away from them, he made his way toward the others, especially Cody.

As the most submissive wolf present, things like the power show that just happened were harder for him to process.

Randy reached them and held out a hand for Cody. Cody let go of Alex and almost threw himself at Randy, wrapping his arms around Randy's waist still whimpering.

He petted Cody's hair, murmuring to him, letting him know that he would protect Cody with his life if necessary. And because Cody was truly one of his best friends, he let Cody feel his affection for him through their pack bond.

Once Cody stopped whimpering, he leaned down and placed a fond kiss on the top of his head. Cody looked up, smiling shakily at his Alpha before moving away and standing. He gave Randy a quick hug and then ran to his mate.

Ted hugged Cody tightly, almost lifting him off his feet. Cody snuggled into his side, wrapping his arms around him and holding onto Ted just as tightly.

Randy looked at Alex and the other two wolves pressed against him and allowed a small smile to cross his face. Alex might not be Alphic but he was definitely a dominant and a good one, too.

Randy petted him a little, not as much as he had Cody but then, Alex didn't need it. "You'll be good for him." Randy murmured, low enough that Mike wouldn't hear him. A smile ghosted on Ted's lips and Randy knew he understood. Alex grinned up at Randy, pleased that his Alpha approved. When Randy turned his attention to Josh and Dan, he got up and walked over to Mike.

Mike threw an arm around his shoulders smirking at his best friend in pride.

Once Randy was done calming down the last two wolves, he stretched and walked out the door; knowing that they would follow him outside. And they did; Josh and Dan stepping to the side to let Mike and Ted go first. They waited until everyone else was out before they made their way.

Josh and Dan were still fairly young; Josh was nineteen and Dan twenty and they were still feeling their way into the pack hierarchy. They both saw this as an opportunity to help prove themselves to their Alpha.

"Josh, Dan, stay here and guard Griffin. He should be out for at least the rest of the day," Randy instructed, keeping his back to the cabin and looking at the surrounding trees. "If he does wake up, let me or Ted know." "Yes, sir." The young wolves said at the same time, eying each other warily.

Randy hadn't left either one in charge, and that meant they would have to figure it out themselves. It was something Randy had done deliberately. It was something they would have to figure out, especially if they were going to work together. And Randy thought it would be better if they figured it out themselves.

"Cody, Alex, you're coming with us." Randy finished and Changed before bounding off into the woods.

Mike and Ted exchanged a look before Changing and running after their Alpha with Cody and Alex behind them.

Randy was going to be on edge for a while unless someone could help calm him down. Hopefully Justin would be up to it.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **Alright, for those of you who don't know, I figured out what my muses were up to: they smuggled in a CM Punk muse, and now I'm stuck with the fucker. *sighs* But that's all right, I got those fuckers on lock down. They wanna bring home the Straight Edge Superstar? Let's see how they like playing straight edge for a while. *muahahaha* For anyone wondering about the possibility of Punkers showing up in here it's at about 85% in favor of. But if he does, and it's still not sure that he will, if he does show up, it's not gonna be the same Punkers that's on RAW.

**A/N2: **Thanks everyone for reading and all the great feedback I've been getting on this story. I would never have imagined that some people would love this story as much as they do. I appreciate it so much, you can't even realize how much. The muses adore it, too; they keep giving me story ideas night and day. Special shouts to the usual: candy_belle, for having random convos with me; it's really been paying off with my MMG stories, lol. When are you gonna write yours, huh? I wanted to read it, like, forever ago! LoL. And, of course, for lending Josh to me. He's very easy to work with and don't he look cute with fur? energy_purple, your feedback, as always, is beyond awesome. My muses thrive on it, and I hope you like this chapter just as much as the others. Over at fanfiction: InTheDark34, thanks for the usual and I can't wait to work on the new story.

**A/N3: **So, I'm sure everyone has heard the news: poor Shelley broke his collarbone earlier in the week. I wish you a speedy recovery, 'Lex, and I know you'll be back better then ever. Until then, be careful and let Sabin take care of you once in a while.

Justin looked over at the wolves nervously. It was obvious something was wrong; Adam had been growling and distant since he had come back from his run. John hadn't made another appearance, but he had a feeling that the brown wolf was just as unsettled. Jay was plastered to Adam's side, petting him and talking to him in a low voice. Adam just kept his eyes focused on the trees, his ears twitching.

Even Chris and Alex seemed distracted. The older vampires were on the other side of the porch; Alex leaning next to where Chris was sitting on the railing. Chris absently ran a hand through Alex's hair before moving it to hold lightly onto the back of Alex's neck.

**_I still think you should let me, _**Alex repeated, his arms crossed in front of his chest. **_Obviously, the stupid fucker needs help._**

**_Let it go 'Lex, _**Chris told him fondly, rubbing his thumb against Alex's bare skin. **_He's scared, that's all._**

**_Scared? About what? Evan's his; he just has to fucken claim him. That is, fuck him and then claim him. _**Alex snickered, laughing at his own joke. **_Come on, that was a good one, _**he insisted when Chris didn't say anything.

**_Decent at best, _**Chris assured him, grinning over Alex's indignation. **_I don't see you rushing to 'help' Randy._**

**_The big boss man doesn't need my help; he actually has a reason to wait, _**Alex told his mate. **_Unlike Cena, the fucken pussy! _**The last sentence was 'shouted' through their pack connection; unlike the rest of their conversation which had been on their own bond.

Chris could feel Adam and Jay's amusement and Mike was laughing outright as they headed toward the house. Even Ted and Cody were chuckling and Chris would bet that Riley was smiling, too.

**_Shelley, watch it, _**John growled, the sound echoing from the trees on the side of the house. **_Your mouth's writing checks your ass can't cash._**

Alex rolled his eyes, completely unfazed by the clear threat in John's 'voice'. **_Come over here and talk to the kid instead of lurking in the bushes like some kind of fucken creeper and I wouldn't have to rag your ass, would I?_**

**_You might do it anyway, _**Cody volunteered as they cleared the trees and headed for the house. **_You're a bitch like that sometimes._**

Alex growled, dropping into an attacking crouch as Cody ran up to them, his tail wagging. He jumped the wolf, playfully pinning him to the ground for a second before Ted headbutted him and sent him flying. Chris jumped lightly onto Ted's back, putting a modified sleeper hold on the big wolf.

Pretty soon the front yard was filled with mock growls and yelps, only Justin and Evan on the front porch, and Randy standing still in the middle of the yard, weren't playing. After a few minutes, everyone calmed down and started Changing back.

Cody sat on the ground, head tilted to the side like he was trying to concentrate on something that was just beyond his hearing. He looked over Evan quickly before turning his blue eyes onto Justin. He stared long enough that it was making Justin uncomfortable, then he grinned.

_**You're right, Teddy, he is almost as pretty as me,**_ Cody told his mate, leaning into the hand that was resting on his back.

The rest of them laughed at his words; everyone knew how much Ted spoiled his young mate. He would give Cody whatever he asked for, no matter what the cost was.

"Hey, Chris." Alex said suddenly, smiling at the vampire. "I'm hungry." Chris rolled his eyes. "Of course, you are. I mean, why not come to a vampires house and expect steak? What could possibly go wrong?"

Chris teased him as he headed for the front door. There was a brief scuffle after Ted and Cody went through; but after a few minutes Chris and Alex followed them in and then came Adam and Jay; Jay throwing an arm around Evan's shoulders and dragging him along with them into the house. Finally Mike went in, Riley close behind.

Justin was left alone with Randy; he fidgeted nervously, unsure what to do. But he couldn't look away from the other man. Randy was standing with his hands clenched at his sides, his body tense as he stared at the young vampire.

"You should go inside," Randy said, his voice quiet. "I'm not in a great mood, so I'm pretty bad company right now." "_Ek gee nie om_," Justin assured him. When Randy just raised an eyebrow, Justin realized he had slipped back into _Afrikaans _in his nervousness. "Um, I – I don't mind," Justin repeated, this time in English. "I mean, unless you want me to go."

"No!" Randy growled, his eyes glowing for a second before he closed them. After a minute he opened them again, back in control of himself. "No, it's OK. I'd like it if you wanted to stay and talk for a little bit."

Without thinking about it, Justin started walking closer to Randy. Once he realized what he was doing, he was only about two feet away from him. Justin couldn't help looking at the tall man in front of him. His sculpted arms, those washboard abs.

Justin closed his eyes, trying to get the image out of his head. He didn't know Randy had even moved until he felt calloused fingers ghost over his cheek before they tucked under his chin and tilted it up. He opened his eyes, looking into Randy's intense blue gaze. He suddenly wished that his own eyes weren't still red. It was irrational, but he wished he still had his own brown eyes, then it would feel more real, feel like Randy was really looking at him instead of this monster he had become.

Justin couldn't stop himself from reaching out and touching Randy; placing his hand on Randy's side, feeling the smooth skin and hard muscle underneath. Randy hissed out a breath, but he looked calmer then he had before, more relaxed even. He ran his hand up and down Randy's side, enjoying the feel of the smooth skin under his hand.

Randy's breath shuddered in his chest, his hands shot out to grab Justin's hips and hauled Justin forward. Pressed against Randy's chest Justin whimpered a little but made no move to get away. He gave into temptation and laid his head on Randy's shoulder and wrapped his arms around Randy's waist.

Randy rubbed his cheek against Justin's hair; a happy, contented rumble coming from his chest. He swept one hand up and down Justin's back and the other one kept a lose hold onto Justin's right hip.

"What's that noise?" Justin asked, his cheek vibrating from it. "It just means I'm happy." Randy told him; even his wolf was content for now. His wolf twitched when Randy inhaled Justin's scent. Instantly, Randy's contentment instantly shifted into sexual awareness that the person he was meant to spend the rest of his life with was here, was in his arms right now.

Randy's body tensed again and for a completely different reason this time. "It doesn't feel _vreemde_, being here with you like this. And it should. Why doesn't it?" Justin asked, pulling away from Randy to look into his face.

Randy laughed a little, rubbing his face with his hand. "You have to ask the hard ones, don't you?" "_Dit is net- Ek verstaan nie_." Justin babbled his nerves taking over. "It's OK, baby," Randy soothed, understanding the feeling behind the words even if he couldn't understand the words themselves. "It's just a complicated question, that's all. I'll answer it, but you might not like it very much."

Randy took a deep breath, trying to find a way to frame his reply.

"Wolves have mates; well, really anyone can have a mate, it just shows up more in wolves. Mostly, I think, because we're used to listening to that part of us that doesn't always use words to talk. You're mine." Randy stated simply, like it was a known fact. The sky is blue. The grass is green. You're mine.

Justin stared at him, his mind running in circles, unable to think past that last sentence: _You're mine_. He tried to think logically: this couldn't be happening, it just didn't make sense. This wasn't some fairy tale where the prince would come rescue him on a horse; there was no happy ending for him.

"But I'm this monster," Justin spit out, wanting both to grab onto Randy and push him away. "I don't deserve this; I don't deserve you."

"You're not a monster," Randy shook his head when Justin tried to interrupt him. "You're not. Am I monster? Is Shelley? Or Sabin? No, we all just act according to our natures. Yes, you've killed humans before, but not purposely. You were feeding, you were surviving. And you didn't know better. You have remorse, I know you do; it's all over your face.

"You think some of us have never taken a life?" Randy asked quietly; waving a hand to encompass not just the ones at the house but all of the pack. "Yes, it is in our nature to protect those under our care, but it's also there to kill for them if we have to. Sometimes, the wolf demands blood when the ones he cares about are hurt. I know you're not a monster, because I've seen monsters.

"You've never stalked humans for the fun of it, for the thrill of chasing them. You've never delighted in their screams or drank their blood like it was water.

"Don't call yourself a monster," Randy repeated, his voice hard. "Not until you've seen real ones. And then, trust me, you'll look at yourself and realize the truth. Yes, there are monsters, everywhere; and not all of them have fangs or fur. But you're not one of them."

Justin stared at Randy, his eyes burning. He threw his arms around Randy's waist and buried his face in Randy's shoulder. Randy rubbed his back, closing his eyes for a minute.

"After this weekend," Randy said softly. "We'll go to my house. We can be alone for a little while." "We're alone now." Justin mumbled, inhaling Randy's scent.

Randy burst into laughter, his shoulders actually shaking. "Alone?" Randy repeated. He turned Justin around so he was facing the front of the house.

Justin's jaw dropped at the sight of everyone pressed against the huge front window. Chris was on one side with Alex and Mike shoving each other as they both tried to get a better view; Adam was in the middle with Jay and Evan peeking around both sides of. Riley stood to the side of them, chuckling at something Jay was saying. Cody was pressed with his face against glass, Ted behind him looking over his shoulder into front yard.

Justin looked at Randy, who was still chuckling. "You get used to it," Randy assured him, throwing a friendly arm around his shoulders and heading for the house. "It's like high school but with less nightmares."

They got to the porch, everyone still staring at them unashamedly. Justin got a sudden, vivid picture in his head of him on the other side staring at Evan and John and he suddenly started grinning. Maybe it wasn't going to be as bad as he first thought.

John watched them go into the house, his heart feeling like it would break. He needed to talk to Evan and soon. He saw the way Evan glanced at the window, the small frown on his face making it clear he was upset about something. He couldn't go in there, not yet. He turned around and disappeared into the trees.

_**You need to talk to him, **_Adam said, his voice quiet and filled with understanding. _**The longer you let it go, the worse it will get.**_

_**You're temper's going to get shorter, you'll be more likely to attack someone. You're not the only one you will suffer, either, **_Adam went on. _**He'll get more depressed, more upset. He'll start acting out, yelling at any and everyone.**_

_**For six months I fought my mating, and I almost killed someone I considered a friend because he gave Jay a hug when he was crying; crying because he thought I didn't want him.**_

_**No matter what your reasons are, you can't ignore this. He's yours for a reason; you need to fucken get over whatever is keeping you out there, and get your ass in here.**_

John acknowledge Adam's words but he still ran into the woods, afraid that he would be rejected and that Evan would leave him.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** Here's another chapter, peeps. The muses have been pretty good this time around, so I've given them back their drinking and smoking privileges. Hopefully, they've learned their lesson and won't bring home any more strange muses, right? *glares at assorted muses* So, my Punk muse has been behaving himself, for the most part. He goes through Pepsi like it's fucken water, though. This is going along pretty well, and I'm having fun writing it; for the most part anyway. Despite the impressive bitch fit I threw earlier, I've been able to get back on track. So, enjoy, peeps and I hope everyone likes.

**A/N2: **Thanks go to everyone for leaving feedback and reading this. Special shouts to: , thanks for the usual and I was glad to help you out. Now that you've popped your MMG cherry, I expect more yummyness, lmao. And , your feedback is beyond cool and all my muses perk up when I read your name. Glad you liked the last short story, and I hope you like this chapter. Over at ffnet: InTheDark34, thanks for the reviews and whatnot, chico.

Once they were back in the house, and fed -which took almost all the food that Chris and Alex had stocked; Alex made a point to tell everyone that they were costing him a fortune in steak- they went back to the front room; arranging themselves around the room.

Randy sat on the couch, with Justin curled next to him; not on his lap, but within touching distance. Randy stretched his arms along the back of the couch, his fingertips brushing Justin's shoulder. Ted sat on the other end of the couch, Cody sprawled on his lap and curled into him, resting his head on Ted's shoulder.

Chris lounged on the chair, his legs stretched out in front of him and Alex was leaning against the wall behind the chair.

Adam sat on the floor, one arm propped up on his knee and his left hand on Jay's ankle when Jay laid down and rested his feet on Adam's leg. Mike sprawled on the floor on his back, grunting a little when Riley used his side as a pillow but didn't say anything.

_**He's another one who needs to fucken pay attention, **_Alex said, looking from where Evan was staring out the front window to where Mike was laying with Riley.

_**Riley's got it under control,**_ Chris told his mate, smiling a little. Alex would never admit it, but he was worried about Mike and John. He knew how Riley felt about Mike -hell, _everyone_ knew Riley was in love with Mike; except, of course, Mike- and he wanted Mike to be happy.

Alex wasn't very sappy or even romantic, but he had a habit of pushing people where he thought they belonged. And he had decided that Mike belonged with Riley and nothing was going to change his mind. Mike, Chris knew, was one of Alex's closest friends and he had decided that while Mike did a good job of deflecting and directing attention to make it look like he was happy, he really wasn't.

As for John, the sooner he got situated, the better. For himself and for the rest of the pack.

"This weekend's the pack meeting," Randy said, with a glance toward Evan.

_**Get your ass in here, John,**_ Randy said. _**We're having a meeting and it's important.**_

When John didn't say anything, Randy's voice hardened. _**Do I have to make it an order?**_ He asked, putting just a touch of power into the question.

Cody twitched, burrowing closer to Ted's side; a low whining noise coming from his throat. After the power show earlier, this was just too much too soon for the submissive wolf to take. Ted ran a hand up and down his mate's back soothingly, his body tense in case it came down to a fight.

Adam and Mike moved at the same time, both crouching and ready to spring in seconds. Jay and Riley made sure to stay behind Mike and Adam, but while they weren't as dominate the other two, they were in no way submissive. They were both as ready for a fight as the rest of the room.

_**John.**_ Randy said again, and it was a clear warning this time. To ignore this time would be a direct insult to his Alpha. And with both men in the middle of their matings, neither one was going to be in a good mood.

Alex pushed away from the wall and went to stand behind Chris; putting a hand on the back of Chris's neck, drawing comfort from his mate. Both vampire's were reacting to the power their Alpha was calling; their fangs were extended, resting on their bottom lips and their eyes were black.

Evan slowly backed away from the window, instinctively heading for cover; even though his own fangs were down, it was clear that he was just as submissive as Cody was.

Justin inched closer to Randy, hesitatingly laying a hand on his knee. Randy didn't say anything but Justin could tell that he felt better having him closer. Randy felt his aggression dial back a little, but there was no way he could back down; to do so would undermine his own authority.

If he did, he would have to reassert his leadership constantly because once it became a question instead of an absolute, they would all test him; even Ted. They wouldn't be able to help themselves; they were alphic and dominant and there was no way they would respect him if he let this slide. And without respect, there would be chaos.

John walked into the room, still in his fur. He walked over to sit in front of Randy before laying down and rolling over on his back, exposing his belly. He stayed like that for a while until Randy got up from the couch and stood over, placing his foot on John's throat for another minute, making sure to use enough pressure to make it hard for John to breathe.

Once Randy was sure he had both taught John a lesson and asserted his own authority, he moved his foot and set on the couch again. Justin was a little apprehensive, but almost as one, the rest of the room relaxed once Randy sat back down.

John laid on his stomach, curled up like he was going to sleep and his eyes were trained on his Alpha but his ears twitched when Evan took a step towards them once everything was calmed down. Justin had a feeling that regardless of who he was looking at, he knew exactly where Evan was.

"We're having a full pack meeting this weekend," Randy said as everyone went back to their original potions. "We need to deal with Griffin before we move on to anything else."

"Are ya going ahead with it, then?" Ted asked, careful to keep his head turned so his neck was bared; Randy seemed calm enough, but there was no point in taking chances. Randy nodded, making a conscious effort to relax, so everyone else would relax a little more, too.

"It needs to be done," Adam put in, everyone else making noises of agreement. "He needs to be made into an example before the teenagers get going."

"Some of them are already talking," Mike said, reaching over and rubbing Riley's back almost absentmindedly. When Riley grinned and arched back into the touch, Mike realized what he was doing and dropped his hand.

"They seem to be forgetting that almost all of us are at least part human," he went on, determinedly ignoring Riley. "Hell, you know how hard it is to find anyone who's pure wolf any more?"

"Chris, Shelley, can the newborns go to the meeting?" Randy asked, looking unconcerned, but Chris could hear the tension in his voice.

Chris exchanged a long look with Alex before the other vampire shrugged.

"Maybe; if we take them hunting before," Chris answered slowly, weighing the options. They needed to be there, but at the same time the potential for disaster was almost unavoidable. "It'll be hard for them to control themselves," Alex said, thinking out loud. "All that tension is going to set them on edge, and the blood..." Chris trailed off, finishing Alex's sentence.

"_Wag,_" Justin said, looking away from Randy for the first time since they had sat down. "Wait," he repeated, in English. "Blood? Why would there be blood?"

"Griffin broke our laws; he has to be punished." Randy stated, calmly. He would take no pleasure in the death of someone who used to be under his care, but he had the rest of his pack to think about, to protect. And Griffin need to pay for what he had done to those human girls.

"You're gonna punish him?" Evan asked hesitantly, stepping closer to John without thinking about it. "What – what are you going to do?"

Randy paused for a second, but he didn't lie to anyone. And he wasn't about to start with something this important.

"For what he did there's only one punishment severe enough." Randy said quietly. Justin shivered and moved closer to Randy, reaching out and placing a hand on Randy's thigh. He immediately felt better, more grounded.

Evan frowned and happened to glance at Mike. Mike smirked and mimed slitting his throat. Evan blanched and shuddered and moved further away from Mike.

"Jesus, Mike," Jay murmured, a half smile on his face. "Do you ever think before you do anything?" "What?" Mike shrugged, and looked at Evan. "It's the truth and he's gonna be there. Might as well hear it now and get used to it."

"I'm not going to watch that!" Evan protested, loudly enough that Ted winced in pain. He advanced at Mike shaking his fist. Mike watched, almost amused, but his eyes were shot with brown and his smirk had a vicious edge to it.

"I don't want to see someone get -" Evan faltered, at a loss for words but he kept heading for Mike. The rest of the wolves watched, in varying degrees of amusement, as Mike sat, patiently waiting for Evan to get close enough to grab. Evan was forgetting himself, again, and he had to be taught a lesson before he did it to someone who wouldn't be as forgiving as Mike.

It was, Chris reflected, like watching a pup trying to attack a full grown wolf. Up until a point, it could be ignored as childish antics, but once you crossed that line, it was time to stop laughing and get down to business.

"I'm not going, and you can't make me!" Evan declared childishly, his nerves wrecked from the strain of the past few days; hell, the past few months. Just as he stepped in front of Mike and tried to push Mike, he pounced only to run into John's silent form.

"Get out of the way, John," Mike growled, real anger showing on his face. "I wasn't going to break him and he needs to learn that he can't go around threatening everyone."

_**Leave him alone, **_John growled.

Mike snarled, his eyes shifting to all brown and glowing. His claws were out and power started shifting through the room. No where near as strong as when Randy had done it, but it was enough to let John know that Mike was dead serious, and that he was willing to draw blood to prove his point.

Justin was a little upset that they were fighting, but it wasn't as tense as when Randy had been fighting with John. He shifted a little closer to Randy and noticed that Adam, Jay and Riley were all moving away from the other two wolves. All three wore almost identical looks of exasperation.

Justin looked at his _onderwysers _and saw that they didn't look particularly concerned. He stole a glance at Randy and when he looked unconcerned as well, he relaxed a little more.

"Don't worry," Cody murmured, smiling at Justin. "They do this every once in a while." "They're close in rank and dominance," Ted said, his eyes on the two wolves currently staring each other down. A small smile curled Ted's mouth and Justin could hear the obvious amusement in his voice. "And John always treats Mike like he's a moron. John deserves it most of the time, to be honest with ya."

"You're not dominant to me, asshole," Mike spit out, his fingers flexing. "Now, get the fuck out of my way."

_**No. **_John growled again, sounding even angrier then before. _**Leave him alone.**_

Mike grinned before jumping on John and clawing and hitting at him.

Justin winced at the brawl that was happening in front of them; he saw Evan staring at the fight that was almost at his feet, a look of disbelief on his face. Justin licked his lips, sneaking another look at Randy. He was worried for his friend but he didn't want to start another fight by asking Randy about him.

"Mike wouldn't attack Evan the way he is John," Randy said, softly, watching the fight with the same amusement as his second. "Evan's not as strong as he is, and Mike would never fight a submissive the way he would an equal. He will need to teach Evan a lesson, though. Evan needs to remember that we're not human, no matter how often we look like it. We don't react the same way someone else would.

"It's better if Mike teaches him the lesson now then and have it hurt a little, then have someone else do it and completely hurt him."

Justin nodded, not even questioning how Randy knew what he was thinking. It was what Heath had warned them both about, mostly Evan. To always think before you act or say anything. And that was something Evan always had trouble with.

_**Mike's kicking John's ass, **_Alex said gleefully. Chris could feel Alex's eagerness to join in; Alex had changed a lot since Chris first met him, but that aggressiveness was still there. He just channeled it a lot better then he used to.

He loved a good fight, and the rough housing of the pack had helped him calm down a lot. Chris glanced at Evan and sighed.

_**He needs to listen when someone tells him something, **_Chris commented, eying the young vampire.

_**Or else he's going to get John and himself in tons of trouble.**_

Before Alex could comment, Mike had John pinned after a flurry of movement, that had ended up with the bulkier wolf on his side, with Mike's hands on John's face and throat, pushing him into the floor. His knee on Cena's side putting all of his weight onto Cena's body. Mike held him there for a minute before he got up and went towards Evan.

"Evan." Mike said evenly; no joy on his face. "Mike." Evan said, trying to smile. He stopped moving away from Mike, finally realizing what was wrong while the two wolves were fighting. He had to learn to watch what he was doing.

Evan sighed at his own stupidity before he bared his neck to Mike. Mike smiled in approval before reaching for Evan. Evan closed his eyes and felt Mikes hands close around his arms.

He wasn't sure what he expected, but to end up face down on the ground with his right arm bent up by his shoulders was definitely not it. Mike made sure all his weight was on Evan's arm and it hurt but a lot less then the beating he had been half afraid of.

"Watch your mouth," Mike murmured, affection and amusement in his voice. A couple minutes later, Mike let go of him and went and sat down next to Riley, his smirk back in place.

Evan sat up gingerly, rolling his shoulders. He scooted over to John and rubbed a hand down John's side. Sighing, he leaned against John's side, enjoying the feel of John's fur. John tensed up but after a minute, he huffed out a breath and relaxed, wrapping around Evan and resting his head on his paws.

_**It's about fucken time,**_ Mike and Alex both said, grinning at John from opposite sides of the room.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: **Here we go again, peeps. I just want to say, for the record, that I fucken hate snow. I hate it and I hate shoveling it, and I especially hate driving in it. Aside from the fuckton of snow that we got this week, everything's been good. I've been banging out the short stories, so that's cool. I'm having trouble concentrating so if I toss out an iPod Shuffle, don't be surprised. There was a brief scuffle between Justin and Cody yesterday. *sighs* Apparently, they're trying to out diva each other. I'm holding out hope that they'll bond over moisturizer and waxing, but so far, nothing. At this point, I'd settle for them not killing each other, to be honest. In other news, I finally got my grubby little paws on a Jericho muse. It took fucken forever, and me using two of my muses for bait, but I got him. He's already insulting everyone and using big words to confuse Randy and John. Jerky's also demanding a story, but not in here. Jerky's every inch the pro and he refuses to be anything but the main focus of the piece. Ah, the egotistical hypocrite, I absolutely adore him.

**A/N2: **Thanks, as always, to everyone for reading this and leaving feedback. Especially this week; I don't know if I would have gotten the energy to write anything if I hadn't gone back and read your guys awesome feedback. Especially: candy_belle ; for cheering me up with random convo's about MMG and how good a wife Jay really is. Oh, and, of course, the MMG rule. You can never say too much about how awesome that rule is, true facts. And another shout out to: energy_purple, your great feedback seriously kept me motivated the last few days, so thanks for that.

"It's a full pack meeting," Randy repeated, a small smile on his face despite the seriousness of the subject.

Justin had moved closer to him, until the young vampire's thigh was resting against his. Randy felt some of his usual confidence return. Surely he could do this; he could make this work.

"I'm going to have Matt and Jeff come down," Randy went on, looking around the room. No one looked surprised by the news, but then, they hadn't climbed to the top of the pack's hierarchy on their brute strength alone.

"Who's Matt and Jeff?" Evan asked hesitantly, his hand tightening in John's fur. He relaxed when no one yelled at him, scratching the top of John's head.

"They watch the border of our territory," Ted answered after glancing at Randy. "It's a pain in the ass, and it means traveling a lot. Most of the wolves don't like being away from the pack that much, but the Hardy's are OK with it."

"Jeff's always been weird," Cody offered, wrinkling his nose. He looked at Justin and raised an eyebrow. "Jeff might be a little weird, but he's a good friend," Jay said quietly before Cody could say anything. "He's always been there when I needed him to be."

"Well, I know that," Cody said indignantly. "But -"

"Drop it, Cody," Alex said, looking amused when Cody glared at him. "You sound like a five year old." "Do not." Cody muttered, pouting at the older wolf.

He looked up at Ted through his lashes. "I don't sound like that. Do I, Teddy?" "Of course not, Baby Boy." Ted answered, smiling indulgently at his younger mate. "See?" Cody stuck his tongue out at Alex, who just rolled his eyes.

"We'll introduce Justin and Evan at the beginning," Randy went on, exchanging an amused glance with Adam at Cody's antics.

Justin looked at Randy nervously. He wasn't sure he could handle that many people staring at him. Randy smiled at him reassuringly; Justin just stared at him blankly before looking embarrassed and glancing away.

Evan looked just as nervous; he clutched a handful of John's fur and tugged on it absentmindedly. John gave a low whine and rubbed his muzzle against Evan's side.

"It won't be easy," Alex said, his voice low and steady. "There's gonna be a lot of people there," Chris went on, meeting Justin's eyes when Evan just kept looking at the ground. "They'll all be watching you, waiting to see if you make a mistake," Alex said, an amused gleam in his eye suggesting he found the whole thing hilarious.

Of course, Alex did have a fucked up sense of humor, Chris conceded, glancing over his shoulder at his mate. Even now, Alex looked like he was just trying to figure out the best way to turn this to his advantage.

_**'Lex, **_Chris warned, even though he knew it wasn't strictly necessary. Alex might be a lot things, and not all of them good, but ungrateful had never been one of them. He wouldn't do anything to undercut Randy, but ….

Alex just grinned at him and Chris sighed. At least he was never boring.

"We'll take you hunting before hand," Alex assured them, moving to sit on the arm of Chris's chair. Chris moved slightly, enough so that Alex could sit down and stretched his arms out so the right one was leaning against Alex's back.

"Right before," Chris added, after glancing at Randy. They exchanged another look and Randy nodded. "Maybe an hour before the meeting starts. We'll take you out the day before, too."

"We might as well feed, too," Alex murmured. "It couldn't hurt." "Except the person you're biting." Mike said, snickering.

"Trust me, Mikey, when you do it right, getting bit is the last thing you'll complain about.' Alex told him, his smirk rivaling the one Mike usually wore.

"Do you guys want to get the measuring tape out next?" Jay suggested sweetly, grinning.

Chris rolled his eyes when Alex and Mike both got serious; a familiar competitive gleam in Alex's eyes.

"Don't even think of it," Adam ordered, smiling. "I wouldn't want you guys to embarrass yourselves when I'm the obvious winner."

Jay started laughing hysterically at the look of outrage on Cody's face.

"No way, Adam!" Cody protested, leaning out of Ted's arms to address the older blonde.

"I'm sure Teddy's way bigger then you are! Teddy -" Cody turned to Ted, who was laughing and blushing at the same time. "Not even for you, Baby Boy," he told him firmly, shaking his head when Cody sulked. "No, Cody." "Fine." Cody huffed, giving up when Ted used his real name; that was a sign that he was quickly crossing the line into annoying.

Justin couldn't help the chuckle that escaped; they looked and sounded like a group of teenagers instead of some of the most dangerous people he'd ever come across.

"You know, I never hear you arguing over who's smaller." Randy offered, smiling.

"Well, we never have to argue over that," Mike told Randy, his hand rubbing Riley's arm before he realized what he was doing. "We already know that one."

Randy eyed his friends warily, he was sure he was going to regret asking, but he couldn't help himself. "Oh, yeah? Who's that?"

As one, they all pointed at John. Even Evan and Justin burst into the laughter at the look of indignation that was on the wolf's face.

Josh growled at Dan, neither one of them willing to back off. They closed in, circling each other before Josh swung at Dan. The other man took the hit before they started brawling.

Almost twenty minutes later, Dan was sitting on Josh's back. Josh struggled for a few minutes before conceding defeat. "Give."

As soon as the word escaped Josh's mouth, Dan moved off of him and sat on the grass.

"So," Josh said, relaxing now that their own statuses had been settled. "What now?" "Well," Dan drawled, frowning a little before looking at the other wolf. "Let's do a quick perimeter check, and then let's see if we can find something to eat."

Josh stomach rumbled and he grinned at Dan. "Sounds like a plan." Dan smiled back and motioned for Josh to go ahead. "I'll be right there; I just want to check on him quick." Dan told him, sneering at the mention of Griffin.

Josh walked a couple feet away and Changed; the blonde, cream colored wolf looked up at Dan, head tilted to the side when he just stared at him.

"Yeah, go ahead; I'll be there in a second." Dan assured him. Josh barked once and then took off toward the woods to start the loop.

Dan shook his head and looked in the window and when he saw the man still passed out in the cage, he Changed and bounded after Josh.

Randy looked around the room, content for right now. Soon enough he'd have to leave and go check on Griffin and then he should go check in at the nursery and make sure the pups were all doing good.

But he was with his mate and that was all that mattered for right this minute. He looked at Justin and smiled at the happiness on the newborn's face as he talked with Evan and Chris.

Yeah, right now he had everything he needed.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: **So, here we are, peeps: Chapter 12. This chapter, as they say, will be serious business. Here it be, hope everyone likes it. Oh, and before I forget, Bryan Danielson did pop up in here in the last two chapters; he did a quick cameo with Josh. But I used his slave name in here -Daniel Bryan- 'cause I didn't want anyone to be confused about who I meant.

**A/N2:** Thanks, to everyone, for reading this. I'm glad you're liking it. Thanks for the feedback; my muses thrive on it, and it makes me mark out completely anytime I see some. **candy_belle**, thanks again, chickie, for all the random convos, pic spams, and babblings that always seem to end up with fics every fucken where. And I'm gonna get you on my side of the Punk fence, eventually. Might as well give in now *muahahahaha* Also, **energy_purple****, **I hope you're feeling better and enjoy the chapter; there may or may not, be a little bit of Guns action in here. To everyone at fanfiction, thanks for the reviews, alerts and favorites. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter.

"You need to relax," Chris told Justin softly, leaning against the side of a building. "I know it's hard, but you need to remember what we told you -" "It doesn't have to hurt," Alex said, watching the people walking past them. "I know that's hard for you to understand, to believe, but it's true."

"They smell like..." Evan trailed off, sounding horrified with himself. "_Vergewe my assebelief_." Justin murmured, closing his eyes.

Alex rolled his eyes. _**They're such drama queens, **_he complained, conveniently forgetting there was a time when he had been convinced his life was over, and that he had nothing to live for.

Of course, he had acted completely different then these newborns and maybe that's why he was getting impatient.

_**'Lex, **_Chris said. Only one word, but Chris managed to put all his love for Alex into it, all his affection and how much much he believed in him. But Alex could hear the exasperation underneath it and he smiled in apology at his mate.

_**'Lex, **_Chris repeated, smiling back at him. _**They're not like me -or you, for that matter. They're submissive, both of them. Neither one of them is ever going to be as aggressive as we are. They react different; you know that. When I was Turned, I already had my mate; I already knew where I was headed. They found theirs very quickly, all things considered. You were alone, 'Lex.**_

Alex nodded once, trying to let go of guilt he didn't even realize he was feeling. Chris was like that, though; even before they had been fully mated, he had been aware of Alex. Where he was, what he was feeling. It was one of the reasons he hadn't been able to resist Turning Chris. Well, that and the fact that Chris threatened to throw himself off the nearest bridge if Alex kept refusing.

_**I meant it, **_Chris told him, his voice low and serious. After so many years, Alex was never surprised any more when Chris knew what he was thinking. _**I didn't want to live knowing there would be a day when I had to leave you. **_

_**I know; I felt the same way. **_Alex assured him, before dropping the subject. He hated talking about things like that, it made him feel like a girl.

"I hate when they do that," Evan pouted, looking at Justin. "It's fucken rude." Justin smacked Evan in the back of the head and glared at him.

"Stop it," Justin hissed. "You're being a jackass." "It's OK, Justin," Chris assured him, his eyes on Evan. His eyes gleamed, turning black and Evan realized something: Chris was just as dominant as some of the wolves, and he wasn't going to take Evan's mouth just because they both happened to be vampires.

"Watch it, Evan," Chris told him, his voice hard. "I cut you some slack 'cause I know it's been hard for you, but I'm not going let you go around blatantly insulting people, especially your own pack. Understand?"

Chris put his own power behind the last word, and Evan noticed it felt different then when Randy had done it -or even Mike. The wolves power had felt hot, scalding like it had left a third degree burn over his skin wherever it touched. Chris's felt colder, like ice and it hurt almost as much as Randy's did. But this felt like there were icicles in his chest, leeching all his life from him.

Evan nodded hurriedly, showing his neck to the older vampire. Chris smirked, he wasn't a wolf; showing neck wasn't necessary to calm him down but he knew that Evan didn't know any other way to show he acknowledged Chris as dominant.

Alex could almost feel sorry for Evan; the newborn wasn't the first person to misjudge Chris at a glance. Chris was so laid back and easy going that most people didn't see the core of sheer strength that was beneath the surface. And it had been more then one person's last mistake, especially when they had still been roaming.

Chris might not make everything into a battle like some dominants, but once he reached the point where he decided enough was enough, he was quick to make sure no one forget it -if they survived. It had been years since Chris had killed anyone, regardless of the reason but that didn't mean he wasn't still capable of it.

"I'll take Evan, you take Justin." Alex suggested, smiling when Chris smirked and nodded. "Come on, small fry," he told Evan, turning around the corner without waiting for the younger vampire. Evan looked at Chris nervously and when Chris nodded at him, he turned and ran after Alex.

"Let's go," Chris said, throwing an arm around Justin's shoulders and leading him out of the alley. Justin glanced at Chris out of the corner of eye and was relieved to see his eyes were back to their normal blue color.

Chris smirked again, but didn't say anything. A little fear never hurt anything. And if thinking that Chris might get pissed and beat him into the ground would get the newborns to pay attention and start really listening to them when they tried to tell the newborns how to hunt, Chris thought it was a fair trade.

Chris lead Justin toward a bar where he knew things got rowdy and no one would miss someone for an hour or so.

"Well, Justin, you're about to get schooled, make sure you pay attention." Justin winced a little but he could feel the thrill of the hunt building a little and when he looked at Chris, he could see that dominant gleam back in his eyes and Chris's fangs flashed briefly when he smiled at Justin.

"There's nothing wrong with enjoying the hunt," Chris murmured, eying the people walking around them. "You're supposed to; even if you are submissive, you're still a predator. The trick is keeping track of who you are while you're stalking your prey." With those last words, Chris walked away from Justin, accidentally bumping into a guy who was leaving the bar.

With a blinding smile, Chris looked up into the bigger man's eyes. The guy had stumbled when he ran into Chris and then after he looked at him in annoyance, he seemed to freeze for a second before his whole body went boneless and he just stood there with a vacant expression on his face.

Chris turned on his heel and walked back towards the alley, the guy following him without question, his eyes glazed. As they walked past, Chris only raised an eyebrow but it was enough to have Justin scrambling after him.

Chris hoped, briefly, that Alex was having as easy a time with Evan as he was Justin -so far at least. But then the darkness swallowed them and he didn't have room for any other thoughts.

"The trick," Alex murmured in Evan's ear as he watched the drunks stumble past them, heading for one of the many bars and strip clubs that were crowded together in this part of down town.

"Is to not forget who you are during the hunt." Evan nodded and moved out from under Alex's arm. Alex smirked; he knew Evan was just reacting to anyone touching him that wasn't John. Judging by the look on Evan's face, he didn't know what to make of it. Alex decided not to enlighten him; he needed to be entertained some how for the next little while. The fact that John had asked them not to tell didn't enter his mind; if it had he probably would have changed his opinion immediately and told Evan, just on the principle of the thing.

Dimly, he could feel Chris's thrill and then hunger as he found his prey. Alex shuddered and threw up stronger shields between him and Chris, almost putting up a wall between them. It wrong and Alex knew if they kept it up for too long, it would start to physically and psychologically hurt his brain. But it was only until they were done with this hunt; they often shielded if they weren't hunting together.

Besides rising his own blood lust, it also turned him on beyond belief. The hunt did that sometimes, anyway; all the adrenaline, he guessed. But to feel his mate's blood lust and desire on top of his own was enough to make him crazed. And if they were hunting together, well, disappearing into an alley or the woods for twenty minutes -give or take- wasn't that big of a deal.

But if he was on his own and it happened? Let's just say, that once Chris had found him standing in the middle of a destruction zone that had once been their house. And even with all the aggression and violence he had used up, he had still needed Chris.

He had attacked Chris as soon as he got within reach, but Chris knew Alex inside and out. They wrestled around, trading punches -by this time, Chris had been almost as worked up as Alex- for a few minute before Chris pinned Alex to the ground and proceeded to fuck him until he couldn't walk for almost ten minutes after they were finished. And considering the rate that vampires healed once they were hurt, that was saying a lot. It had been exactly what Alex needed.

And even though they had been out of a house until they could get a new one built and had to listen to the ribs from most of the pack -Mike, in particular, found it hysterical and he still liked to mention it once in a while to annoy Alex- Chris had been proud of Alex. "It's just a house, 'Lex. You controlled yourself well enough to stay here, even if you did destroy the place. It's not like you went hunting."

Alex knew Chris was right; fifty years ago his reaction might have been the same, but the results would have been very different.

For a second, Alex could swear he heard a women crying, and a low, masculine voice purring: "Go ahead and cry, my sweet, that will only make you taste better. Isn't that right, my little Alexander?"

Alex closed his eyes and shook his head, trying to block the voices from turning into nightmare scenes that he could still remember so well.

"Alex, are you, OK?" Evan asked, jumping a little when Alex looked at him and his eyes were black. "Yeah, I'm fine." Alex said, his voice strained. He closed his eyes again and after a second, he opened up his eyes. Even though his eyes were still black, he sounded like himself again.

"Come on, Ev, let's go get some lunch." And despite his disgust at Alex's choice of words he could feel his fangs extend and an excited tempo started playing in his body.

Alex glanced over at him and chuckled. "Ah, the thrill of the hunt," Alex said, not bothering to hide his amusement. "Even submissives feel it."

Evan frowned at Alex. "Why does it sound like you wanted to say 'bitch' instead?" Alex shrugged. "I didn't mean to, and even if I did, I wouldn't have meant it the way you do."

"Aren't you, um, a submissive?" Evan asked hesitantly, cringing away a little when Alex looked at him in disbelief. Alex stared at him for a minute and then burst into laughter.

"No, I'm not," Alex managed to choke out after a minute. "I'm just not as dominant as Chris is. So yourself a favor and not ask anyone else that, alright?" Alex collapsed into more laughter as he imagined the looks on Riley and Jay's faces if Evan ever asked them that.

"I'm confused," Evan admitted, frowning again. "I thought Chris was the dominant one."

Alex shook his head, still smiling. "No, a lot of people think that's how it works. There's not always a dominant and a submissive in a mating, or even just a relationship. Chris is just more dominant then me. In a mating, the most dominant one is the, uh, one in charge, I guess is the best phrase, but it's very misleading.

"Anyway, Chris is more dominant then me, so I get my ranking in the pack from him. And he's the one who answers any power plays or insults if we're both there."

Evan nodded slowly, remembering that from his earlier lessons.

"Ah, perfect," Alex murmured striding out from the alley and walked into a tall guy with black hair and blue eyes. Evan good see Alex laugh and apologize. The guy laughed it off and glanced down into Alex's eyes. After a second he just seemed to sag and he just kept gazing at the same spot.

Alex smirked and turned around, heading back for the alley and Evan. As he walked by, Alex glanced at Evan and winked, before motioning hm to follow. Evan still felt vaguely disgusted with himself, he started to feel excited.

Alex smirked again, he could practically feel the energy radiating off of Evan, and he hoped Chris had as easy a time as he was. He turned around and grinned as he saw the man patiently standing there. This was going to be good.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **Well, this was a pretty quick turn around, huh? The muses were feeling it tonight, so yeah. Hope you enjoy it, peeps.

**A/N2: **Thanks to everyone who's taking the time to read this; I really appreciate it. Special thanks to:candy_belle**. **Hope enjoy this after the teaser, lol. Also, thanks for all the faves and reviews at ff. I'm really glad everyone's liking this story so much, lol.

Mike circled around his house, anxious for some reason. He knew Alex was in there, and something was goading him to run an extra perimeter to make sure there was nothing wrong. Mentally shrugging, Mike ran another quick check; it wasn't like it would hurt to make sure everything was alright.

Mike walked into his kitchen, snickering when he saw Alex standing at the stove, frying up a steak.

"You're such a good wife, man," Mike teased, slapping the other wolf on his back as he walked to get a beer out of the fridge. "Where would I eat if you weren't slaving away every day?"

"You'd be eating Sabin and Shelley's food after you conned someone into cooking it." Alex said, rolling his eyes. Mike snickered again and came to look over Alex's shoulder.

"Looks good," he commented, turning away from Alex to look out the window. He whipped his head back. "Did you just smell me?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Alex said, ignoring the confused look on his best friend's face.

"You gonna stare at me all day or do you wanna eat your food?" Alex asked when Mike was still staring at him.

Mike shook his head to clear the image of Alex sniffing his neck. To his surprise he liked the idea of it. He wondered, briefly, if he could talk Alex into bed and then he banished the thought from his mind; not even sure why his mind was going there.

"Fuck off, douche bag," He told Alex, reaching around him to grab the plate with his steak on it and sitting at the table. Alex rolled his eyes and went over to the silverware drawer and got out a knife and fork and tossed them at Mike.

Mike caught the knife, dropped it on the table and then caught the fork without blinking. "You're such a fucken girl," he muttered, but he used them instead of his fingers.

Alex didn't say anything, he just sat down next Mike and swiped his beer, chugging down half of it before passing it back to Mike. Mike didn't even comment, just reached over and kicked Alex's leg under the table.

Alex noticed that Mike kept his leg against Alex's; he didn't say anything to Mike about it, but he looked smug for the rest of the night, right until they left for the meeting.

Adam moved closer to Jay, pulling him back against his chest when the other man tried to get out of bed.

"Where do you think you're going?" Adam asked, kissing Jay's neck and inhaling his scent. "I was going to get a drink." Jay told him in a long suffering tone, but he angled his head so Adam had more access to his neck.

"That's nice." Adam said absently, throwing a leg over Jay's. He propped himself up on his elbow and just stared for a minute down at his mate. Jay just smiled and reached for Adam's free hand and pulled it around his waist, lacing their fingers together. "I love you, too, Addy."

Adam grinned and rubbed his nose against Jay's shoulder, laughing a little. "You a mind reader now, Angel?" "After thirty-seven years with you, twenty as your mate, I might as well have fucken ESP where you're concerned." Jay answered, rolling over onto his back and staring up at Adam.

_**If you're so talented, what am I thinking now? **_Adam leered, freeing his hand from Jay's and moving so he was holding Jay's hip. He dipped his head down and captured his mate's mouth in slow kiss, taking his time exploring Jay's mouth like it was their first kiss all over again.

Jay sighed happily when Adam pulled back. Even after all this time, Adam could still make him feel like they were still seventeen. He fisted his hands in Adam's hair and pulled him down for another another kiss, this one harder and needier.

Adam shifted until he was on top Jay, taking control of the kiss; savaging Jay's mouth until they were both panting. He scraped his teeth over Jay's lower lip when he was finished and started leaving biting kisses all along Jay's jaw.

Adam smirked when Jay moaned as he bit him on his pulse point, making sure he left a bruise. His Angel always liked it when he marked him as his mate, his property; especially where everyone else could see it.

_**You never answered me, Angel,**_ Adam taunted, moving a hand in between their bodies and gripping Jay's dick just the way he liked it.

Adam moved until he could get better leverage, slowly jacking his mate; he loved the whimpers that were coming from Jay's throat. He let go after a second, smirking at his mate's disappointed moan, and trailed his fingers down until his index and middle fingers were pressed against Jay's entrance.

_**Sometimes you talk too much, fucker. Shut the hell hell up and fuck me already, **_Jay demanded, pushing against Adam's fingers, a low whine escaping his throat from the friction of Adam fingering him dry.

Adam growled, his own glowing eyes staring down into Jay's; one yellow and one brown. His mate was a mouthy little bastard, but luckily for him, Adam loved that about him.

_**We'll see who's gonna be making the most noise by the time we're done,**_ he promised darkly, a feral smile flashing on his face.

Adam moved his hands, planting them on either side of Jay's head. He bit Jay's shoulder, holding him down with his mouth and his weight. He nudged Jay's legs apart with his knees and shifted his hips. Jay, with the ease of practice and desire, moved his own hips off the bed enough so that all Adam had to do was snap his hips forward and he was buried balls deep in Jay.

Jay groaned and wrapped his legs around Adam's waist. "Fuck, Addy," Jay hissed when Adam didn't do move. "Fuck. Please? I need you. I want you to – god dammit, Adam. Please!"

The last word was wailed, Jay frantically moving his hips against Adam's, trying to get him to move. Adam growled again, biting down on Jay's shoulder until Jay was almost sobbing, desperate for Adam to move.

Adam let go of his shoulder and proceeded to fuck his mate as hard as he could. He paused for a second to shift until he was hitting Jay's spot with every brutal thrust. Jay's hands squeezed his shoulders as he came, screaming Adam's name. He could feel Jay's claws flex, breaking his skin and the scent of his own blood mixed with Jay's scent, musky from the sex, combined with the sensation on Jay's insides gripping him like a vices was enough to send Adam over the edge.

He collapsed on top of his mate, nuzzling contently at the side of his neck. He flicked out his tongue, licking the sweat from his throat, his chest vibrating from the contented rumble his wolf was making.

"We need to get ready," Jay mumbled after a minute, running a hand down Adam's back lazily before letting it drop onto the bed again. Adam placed one last kiss on Jay's chest before moving. He pulled out of Jay and then laid face down on the bed.

Jay chuckled and climbed over Adam, pausing to drop a kiss onto his back before getting off the bed and heading towards the bathroom.

Adam turned his head and watched Jay's ass as he crossed the room before grinning and jumping out of bed. Maybe there was a good reason to take shower after all.

Ted groaned and collapsed on the bed next to Cody. After a second Cody rolled over and snuggled into his mate's side. "Fuck, Baby Boy, you're gonna kill me one of these days," Ted grunted, moving his arm so he could wrap it around Cody.

"You almost killed me, too." Cody reminded the older man, stretching and cracking his back before settling back against Ted.

He traced his fingers over his mate's chest, his nervousness translating through his touch. Ted rubbed his hand up and down Cody's back, soothing him without words.

"I'm scared, Teddy," Cody admitted, his voice small. "What if something happens tonight?" "With Griffin?" Ted asked, a little confused. "No, with the pack."

"Did ya have a vision, Baby Boy?" Ted asked, even though he knew the answer. Cody shook his before burying his face against Ted's chest.

_**No, but I'm still scared, **_Cody repeated, his voice worried. _**I mean, what if my visions are broken or something?**_

_**Baby Boy, you're worried for nothing, **_Ted assured him, putting a finger under Cody's chin and tilting his head up until he was looking in his eyes. _**And even if something did happen, I would never let anyone hurt ya. Understand?**_

Cody stared into his mate's eyes and then smiled before nodding. "I was just being retarded." He told Ted before looking at the clock and jumping out of bed. "Shit, I need to take a shower before we leave. Wanna take one with me?"

"Well, if you're gonna beg," Ted drawled, getting out of bed and following his mate into the bathroom. As he watched Cody mess around with the water temperature, his thoughts wandered briefly to the cabin where they had Griffin.

If anything was going to go wrong tonight, it was going to be because of him, Ted knew it.

John wandered the woods aimlessly; it was taking all his control to go to Raleigh and hunt Evan down to make sure he was OK. He whined, shaking his head as he headed toward Randy's. He might as well be miserable and have some good company.

What made it worse, was that he knew he had no one else to blame. If he could just manage to get get his shit together and at least talk to the kid, he knew half his problems would be solved. But eery time he even thought about Changing, he would start freaking out and getting scared. Which in turned, freaked him out even more.

He was an alphic wolf; there was very little that could -or did- scare him. Except for when he pissed off his Alpha. John mentally shuddered at the memory before pushing it out of his mind. He was determined that after the meeting he would Change and have an actual conversation with his mate.

Even if he had to have Adam drag him in front of Evan, he was going to do this.

Randy stood in the clearing, looking around. He wasn't surprised to see two dark brown wolves heading toward him; he had been expecting them for the last hour at least.

He turned his head when he heard Griffin start cursing as he finally woke up from the little love tap Randy had given him. He had sent Dan and Josh both home to get some rest before the meeting tonight.

The two wolves paused a few feet in front of him; one Changing and the other just smiling up at him. Matt stayed kneeling, showing his Alpha neck before he straightened and walked over to him. Jeff followed his brother after greeting Randy as well.

Randy hugged Matt before scratching Jeff behind the ears and under his jaw. Jeff whined happily, licking Randy's hand; showing him how happy he was to see his Alpha without words.

"How's everything?" Randy asked as they made their way to the cabin, Jeff keeping close to Matt's legs. "Just about the usual," Matt answered, his hand going down to pet the top of his brother's head when Jeff started at the sound of Griffin yelling for someone to let him out.

"Jeffro's still not talking to anyone but me," Matt went on, his voice easy. Randy could pick up the anguish that was layered underneath the words and he put a hand on Matt's shoulder and squeezed, letting him know that even though they were separated, he could still lean on his pack when he needed help.

Matt smiled gratefully and went on. "The border's been quiet, but I thought I find traces of vampires to the south," Matt held a hand up before Randy could ask why he hadn't reported it. "It wasn't until we were on our way here, and I decided to tell you in person."

Randy nodded, already almost positive who the vampires were. "Recent?" "Semi. There was talk about a girl going missing from a few towns over; over in Virginia but I didn't find any sign of the poor thing. It could be unconnected, but with you finding your own vampire," and here Matt smirked, finding it amusing that his Alpha had finally been caught. "I thought it was suspicious."

Randy nodded again and sighed. "Keep this between us for now, OK? I'll tell everyone else after the meeting." Matt shrugged; Randy was the boss.

They paused a few yards from the cabin to discuss the meeting and Jeff laid down by Matt's feet and closed his eyes to take a small nap. He couldn't sleep for too long any more, so he usually just napped when he could, trusting his big brother to watch over him.

It was one of the few things he could trust any more.


	14. Chapter 14

**Warning: **Blood, violence. Yes, I know there was violence in a few of the other chapters but this one has VIOLENCE.

**A/N: **OK, here's chapter 14, peeps. So, here's the meeting we've all wanted to see. I've added extra warnings for this chapter, please check them out. It's not really gory but it's bad enough that I felt it warranted the extra little bit at the top. What else? Hmmmm. I think that's it. Enjoy it and be sure to tell me if you thought it was worth the wait.

**A/N2: **Even though I say this every chapter, I still mean every word: thanks to everyone who reads, and I love the feedback/favorites/alerts that you guys are nice enough to give me. My muses thrive on it, and whenever I need motivation to write, I go back and read them, and it always helps. candy_belle;

thanks for help with the Roddy story and also for the review on my Punk/Randy story. I know how much you dislike him; on account of what a good little sheep you are, lmfao. We get to see more cameos by Josh and Dragon, so I'm sure that'll be very, very fun. Oh, and see if you recognize two of the new faces that are gonna pop up here. *evil laughter* **energy_purple**; I hope this week is better then your last one sounded. Your feedback, as always, goes above and beyond, and the muses love it almost as much as they love beer, weed and porn. I know you've been dying for this chapter, and I hope it was worth the wait.

_**We're almost there, boss, **_Alex informed Randy as they made their way through the woods. Two black wolves with white paws ranged on either side of the group, loping around them in easy circles while they headed toward the clearing where the meetings always took place.

_**Maybe twenty minutes, **_Chris added, scratching Jay's ears when the wolf ran in and head butted his side. Jay licked his hand and dashed over by Justin, play snapping at the newborn and then barking when the newborn jumped a little.

Justin smiled slightly and briefly petted Jay before he even realized what he was doing. Jay barked again and then pricked up his ears and ran off towards Adam.

_**Good,**_ Randy told him, sounding slightly distracted. _**How did the hunting go?**_

_**Not bad, **_Chris answered glancing over to where Justin and Evan were walking in between him and Alex. _**Better then I thought it would, to be honest.**_

_**We tried to get them to at least try to hunt by themselves,**_ Alex put in.

_**But they wouldn't even consider it, **_Chris finished, mentally shrugging. _**We weren't really surprised; they're both submissive and it's going to be a while before they'll even think of going out on their own.**_

_**Alright. Matt and Jeff are here. Let them know about Jeff, please?**_ Randy asked. _**I need to go; I'll see you in a minute.**_

Chris sighed and made his way closer to the newborns; putting him at Alex's side in case Alex needed him during the walk.

"Hey, we talked to Randy," Alex said, interrupting the silence. Justin and Evan both looked over their shoulders instinctively and then looked sheepish.

Alex grinned and went on: "Matt and Jeff are there." He left it at that, hoping to lead them into it, rather then just shoving it all in their faces at once.

"What're they like?" Evan asked suddenly, looking worried. He didn't really want to meet any more people then he had to tonight.

"Matt's OK; he's the same age as Adam and Jay. He's a little intense, but -" "A little?" Alex interrupted, raising an eyebrow. "That's like saying Mike's kinda smug; when we all know Mike's a smug bastard."

"Matt's like most dominant wolves, he's fine until you disrespect him, and then he'll make sure you learn your lesson," Chris went on, ignoring Alex except for the half smile on his lips.

"The one you really need to know about is Jeff. He's different," Chris told them after a pause. "Most wolves are very tactile; you've noticed that from just seeing us together the past few days."

"Except for Matt, Jay and Randy," Alex went on after the newborns both nodded. "Jeff hates being touched. Even Randy will only touch him once in a while. Jay's his best friend; has been since Adam and Jay joined the pack."

"He won't even talk to anyone besides Matt," Chris picked up, his voice level and serious. "I doubt he'll Change, either."

"What happened?" Justin asked, unable to imagine anything that could change someone's personality as drastic as Jeff's seemingly had.

"A few years ago, he was out for a run and he fell asleep in a field by the southern border," Chris explained. "Jeff used to always go off by himself; he used to like the solitude. Well, he was sleeping and three vampires found him."

"Jeff's not a fighter; he didn't stand a chance," Alex said and his voice held the same dead quality as the other day. "They just toyed with him and he was barely alive when Matt found them a couple hours later."

_**It wasn't your fault, **_Chris told him firmly, putting his hand on Alex's back. _**It wasn't you. You would never hurt someone that way.**_

_**Now, **_Alex added harshly, the revulsion and anger that didn't show on his face were filling his mind and Chris let him feel how much he loved him. _**Fifty years ago, I would have been worse then they were and you know it! I really was a monster and I still -**_

Chris stopped and backed Alex into a tree, stopping their walk. Evan and Justin halted abruptly, staring in shock at the sight of Chris pinning Alex to a tree. Adam and Jay noticed they weren't moving and circled back to see what happened.

_**You're not a monster, **_Chris snarled, his face in Alex's so that they were nose to nose. _**You didn't know better. You were stuck with someone who **__**was**__** a monster for almost fifty years before I came along. Before I was even born.**_

_**And even after all that time, you were still there under that layer of cruelty and blood and depravity that you wore like a second skin. **_

_**I saw the real you that day you showed at John's work, remember? Even before I saw you, I could feel you there, watching me. And I wasn't scared, I wasn't terrified; if you were a monster, do you think I would have fallen in love with you? Do you think I would have taken you for my mate?**_

_**You. Are. Mine,**_ Chris growled, his eyes black. _**Mine. And you are not a monster.**_

Alex stared into Chris's eyes before nodding slowly and baring his neck to Chris.

_**You've been hanging out with the wolves for too long, **_Chris told him, sounding amused. Now that Alex had stopped blaming himself for things he couldn't change, he was calmer as well.

And maybe he had been with the wolves for too long as well because the sight of Alex's bared neck was enough to make him forget where they were.

_**We need to go to this meeting but, later, I'm going to remind you who you are, **_Chris promised, nibbling the side of Alex's neck.

Alex took a deep breath and clutched his hands on Chris's hips. _**If it wasn't for you, I would've destroyed myself. I needed you more then you ever needed me. I love you.**_

Chris softened; neither one of them were very romantic, so to hear Alex say the words -even though he knew they were true, even though they showed each other everyday that they were true- it made Chris feel them even more then normal.

_**I love you, too. And you saved me just as much as I saved you. Never doubt that.**_

"Is everything OK?" Justin asked nervously. "Yeah, everything's good," Chris answered, dropping a quick kiss on Alex's mouth before moving away from him. "Let's go."

Justin and Evan exchanged looks before Evan shrugged and followed after the older vampires. Justin stared after them for a minute, wondering what could have scarred his _onderwyser_ badly enough that it was still affecting him years later.

Randy watched the vampires break the trees, his stomach relaxing at the sight of Justin walking towards him.

"That's him, huh?" Matt murmured, smiling. Jeff whined a little and pressed against Matt's legs at the sight of the unfamiliar vampires heading for them.

"It's OK, Jeff," Randy said softly. "They won't hurt you; I promise." Jeff looked up at his Alpha and wagged his tail before turning back to face the vampires.

Jay burst through the trees right behind his pack-mates, with Adam behind him. He sent up a howl at the sight of his best friend. Jeff joined in, his ears pricked up and his tail wagging. He strained forward, eager to run.

"Go ahead, Jeff," Matt told him, grinning at his brother's excitement. "I'll keep an eye out." With those words, Jeff ran at Jay both of them barking happily. They play wrestled for almost ten minutes while everyone else greeted each other.

Matt smiled at the careful way both newborns greeted him after paying respects to their Alpha. "Not bad," Matt complimented them, amused. "I'm not quite high enough up to warrant it, but I'll take it."

"Of course, you will," Adam said as he came up to them after Changing. "You always did; even if it meant getting stuck with everyone's sloppy seconds."

Matt growled and there was a scuffle that ended with Adam sitting on top of Matt's back and grinning. "Get off of me," Matt huffed, just as amused as his friend. Adam bounced on his back a couple times before getting up.

Jay and Jeff walked back over, Jay on two legs and chatting to Jeff.

"See, that's Justin and the small one is Evan," Jay explained, scratching Jeff's nose and the top of his head. Evan just rolled his eyes; he had been called something along those lines for as long as he could remember. It hardly ever bothered him an more.

Jeff whined a little anxiously, his eyes darting to his brother before he looked at the newborns. Very carefully, they greeted Jeff the same way they did his brother.

_**Did you see that? **_Jeff asked his brother gleefully. _**I knew I was fucken awesome.**_

"You've been spending too much time listening to Mike when we're here," Matt said out loud, rolling his eyes.

Just then five wolves burst through the trees, barking and play growling at each other.

"It's almost time," Randy said, looking up at the sky and watching the sun sink lower on the horizon. There was an underlying growl in his voice that sent shivers down Justin's spine.

Randy's nostrils flared, picking up Justin's scent. He inhaled deeply before closing his eyes. Every muscle in his body was tense and every nerve in his body was screaming for him to drag Justin off into the woods or all the way back to his house.

He took another deep breath and brought his wolf under control. He couldn't afford to lose control, especially tonight.

"Everyone is going to come up and sniff you; even the pups," Chris said softly, his voice even and reassuring. "It's tradition," Alex told them as the rest of the pack wandered into the field. "It's supposed to be so they'll recognize your scent if they come across it some where, but for you, it's only a gesture."

"You have to keep your mouth shut tonight," Chris warned Evan and now his voice was stern and he put a touch of his power behind the warning. "When the moon is at it's height, a werewolf will change, no matter what else is going on. Their tempers are shorter, their control is shakier and they're meaner.

"If you say something and it's taken as an insult, they will correct you -and not as gently as we have been. You're best bet is to keep your eyes on the ground until everyone has gone past. They go in order of the hierarchy; the pups will go first. The last ones will be myself and Alex, then The Three -and Jay- then Ted and Cody. Randy will say something about welcoming you to the pack and ask if anyone objects."

"There's a chance someone will," Alex said seriously. "If that happens, there will be a fight to see who wins. Randy will ask for a volunteer to be champion for each one of you. Then whoever objected will fight the first champion and whoever wins that will determine if you stay or go. Then -if they're still standing- they fight the second champion and the same thing happens. Got it so far?"

Justin and Evan nodded, their eyes wide. It had seemed so simple when Randy had first told them they were staying.

"Alright, once everything's done, you'll both go sit on the left side of Randy. The left side, OK? We'll be on his right side; Ted closest to Randy and Cody will be sitting in front of Ted. It'll go like that until you get to me, and Alex will be standing in front of me and to the left a little." Chris explained, trying to put the newborns at ease.

"Why is Cody sitting and Alex isn't? Is it because Cody's a wolf?" Evan asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

"No, it's because Cody's submissive and Alex isn't; Jay'll be standing as well," Chris answered patiently. "After the fight -if there is one- you'll go sit on Randy's left side, and then the meeting will go on about general pack business and this time about Griffin. Randy will decide what to do about him and then he'll carry out whatever punishment he decides on."

"OK, come on," Alex said, walking over into the middle of the clearing where Randy was already standing. Justin looked around quickly; he could see how antsy the _weervolven_ were. Even Ted seemed to be filled with nerves almost jogging in place while he waited for Randy to start the meeting.

Riley said something to Mike making him laugh before he went over to stand by the rest of the pack, leaving Mike staring after him thoughtfully.

Adam rubbed a hand up and down Jay's back absently, talking to John who was smiling a little and nodding.

"You'll stand here," Chris said, turning the newborns so that they were facing the front and the rest of the pack.

"Alright, we're going to go stand over here. Just remember what we told OK?" With those last words Chris and Alex both took their spots next to the others.

The first few minutes were a blur to Justin; he was so nervous, he couldn't hear anything that Randy was saying. Eventually, he was aware of children passing in front of him, looking up at him curiously.

He risked a glance at Evan who was smiling at a little boy who was poking his leg. "He feels like we do when we're not wearing our fur." He whispered to his friend as they went past.

It managed to relax both of them and they were able to pay attention to what was going on around them easier.

Soon the kids gave away to adults, most of them hurrying through the ritual. "Good job," Matt said softly when he leaned in to smell Justin's shoulder. Jeff barked softly in agreement, wagging his tail briefly.

"Almost done," Riley whispered cheerfully a few minutes later. "Just a couple more and then it'll be over."

"See, it's not hard keeping your mouth shut is it?" Alex asked, smiling. "You're almost there." Chris reassured them.

John was the first of The Three to walk past and he stopped and stared at Evan for long enough that Mike ended up shoving him so he would move. "Stop fucken drooling already," Mike muttered, rolling his eyes. John growled at him. "Fucken save it." Mike advised him, dragging him away from the newborns.

"You guys are doing really good," Jay told them quietly as he leaned in between them. "Not long now and you'll be stuck with us forever." "Nice, Jay. Could you make it sound any more like a punishment?" Adam asked, placing his hand on Jay's lower back to move him along.

Cody smiled at them but it was obvious to Justin that his mind wasn't on them -at all. "Y'all are doing good." Ted assured them with a distracted smile, his mind on his mate.

"Does anyone deny Justin and Evan admittance to the pack?" Randy asked, his voice loud enough so that it carried to everyone there.

"I do," A male voice said. "Me, too," Another one added. "Ah, Max and Jeremy," Randy said, amused. He wasn't surprised; Max and Jeremy Buck were two of the younger wolves who had been the most vocal about Griffin. He had planned on teaching them a lesson, it was nice of them to volunteer themselves for part of it.

"Are you sure about this?" Randy asked, almost pleasantly. The brothers glanced at each other but nodded firmly. "Yes; what do we know about them? Nothing. So why should they be allowed to join." Jeremy sneered.

It was borderline mutiny since they knew Randy had to approve before anyone was even brought in front of the pack, but he let it go for now.

"Who will stand for Justin?" Randy asked even though he already knew the answer.

"I'll do it," Alex said, after glancing at Chris and when Chris nodded he went to stand next to Randy. He was grinning; his fangs gleamed in the moonlight and his eyes reflected the light like cat's might.

Max paled and stepped back before he could stop himself. "He can't fight," Max protested, sputtering. "He's mated!"

Randy raised an eyebrow; he was thoroughly enjoying himself. He was the Bucks' Alpha and he would protect them with his life, but he had never liked either one of them so it was hard for him to feel sorry for them right now.

"Yes, he's mated, but our laws don't say you can't fight if you're mated," Randy explained calmly. "They only state that you can't fight if you're submissive. Since Alex isn't submissive, and just less dominant, as long as Chris says it's OK, I don't see a problem." Randy said, smiling inwardly.

"I don't have a problem with it," Chris answered when Randy looked at him questioningly. "I know Alex is up to it."

Randy nodded. "Who will stand for Evan?" Once again Randy posed the question, even when he knew the answer. "I'll do it," Mike answered, smirking as he sauntered over to his Alpha and stood next to Alex. "Got nothing better to do tonight anyway."

Now it was Jeremy's turn to look scared. But backing down wasn't an option in either one of their minds, so they had to go on with the fight.

Alex and Max circled each other, each searching for an opening. Alex actually saw three or four but he let it go, waiting for the younger man to make the first move.

Max darted in, trying to use his speed as a weapon. And it might have worked -if he were more experienced. As it was, he barely managed to clip Alex in the stomach before Alex moved away from the hit.

But Max smirked, acting as if he scored a major hit. Alex narrowed his eyes, annoyed. The next time he dashed in Alex caught him with a knee to the stomach and followed it with a forearm to the back of his head when he doubled over.

He let Max stumble away from him, the thrill of the fight singing in his blood. Alex punched him in the face, hearing a satisfying crunch when he broke Max's nose. In seconds there was blood pouring down his face, which scared Max even more; it was obvious he thought Alex was going to go crazy at the sight.

He was safe, though. Alex couldn't lie, the sight of it did twitch his stomach a little; he wasn't dead, after all. But he was long past the point where a little blood would send him into a frenzy. Alex was pleased to see that the newborns also held fast, even though both were reacting to the scent of blood on the air; their fangs were extended, the tips resting on their bottom lips and gleaming in the moonlight.

_**How long are you going to play with him?**_ Chris asked, slightly amused when Alex delivered a flurry of punches to Max's ribs and then hitting him with an uppercut.

_**I'm just about done,**_ Alex assured him, side stepping an awkward spear attempt by Max. He grabbed Max and tripped him, sending him face first to the ground.

Alex was on him in a second; forcing Max's head to stay down and twisting his right arm up until his hand was practically touching his own shoulder blade.

"I give," Max spit out, his voice pained. Alex waited another minute before releasing the hold and standing over the younger man. Max moved, sitting on the ground and showing Alex his neck until Alex turned around and went back over by Randy.

"Fucken show off," Mike muttered, smirking at his friend. "Now, I've got to one up you."

If Randy heard them, he gave no sign, but judging from the grin on Ted's face he had heard them perfectly.

"Thank you, Alex," Randy rumbled, the wolf even more in his voice then it had been even a little while ago. Alex glanced up at the sky and noticed that the moon was over a fourth of it's way to where it would be the strongest -when it was directly above them.

Alex showed Randy his neck and then made his way back to his spot in front of Chris. Chris smirked at him and placed a hand on Alex's hip, squeezing briefly before letting go. But Alex got the message loud and clear. He glanced over his shoulder and saw a gleam in his mate's eyes that had nothing to do with blood lust.

Alex shuddered and struggled to pay attention to what was happening.

Mike and Jeremy were circling each other; Jeremy was definitely the better fighter of the brothers, but he was no match for Mike. Mike was taking pot shots at him; a couple to his ribs and few to his face.

Jeremy growled and lashed out with his claws, catching Mike off guard. He looked down at the four thin lines of blood dripping down his chest. He heard a low growl off to the side of him and he knew without looking that it was Alex, voicing his displeasure at Mike getting cut open.

Mike looked back at Jeremy and smirked again, but this time it was cold and Mike's power flared, making Jeremy pale even more. "You stupid fuck," Mike said flatly, flexing his fingers as his own claws sliced out. "You just made it almost impossible that you're going to walk out of here."

Mike advanced on the smaller man, punching him in the face and then raking Jeremy's chest with his own claws, going a lot deeper then he had when he sliced open Mike.

"You know the rules, Jer," Mike taunted, cutting open his face with a well timed swipe. "The second you use your claws and draw blood, it becomes a fight to the death -unless someone gives up." Mike stomped on Jeremy's leg, breaking the bone.

Jeremy tried to crawl away on his hands and knees but Mike was having none of it. "The words, Jeremy," Mike told him, his voice cold and his power running over Jeremy's skin. He tore open Jeremy's back, making him scream in pain. "Or I swear to fucken god, you leave here in a fucken casket."

When he still didn't say anything, Mike kicked him in the ribs sending Jeremy over onto his back, whimpering in pain. He leaned down and wrapped his hand around Jeremy's neck, making sure his claws cut into his skin.

"The words," Mike repeated, lifting Jeremy up in the air until he was standing straight again, Jeremy's toes barely touching the ground. "The words, Jeremy. And this is your last chance," Mike warned him, squeezing his neck.

"I give," Jeremy wheezed out. "I submit."

"That's what I like to hear," Mike said cheerfully. He walked over to where Max sat in the grass, clutching his arm and staring up at him in terror. "You might want to take care of him." Mike told him, casually dropping Jeremy in a pile next to his brother.

Mike walked over to Randy, baring his neck to his Alpha. "Good way to make a point, Mike," Randy murmured, smiling. "Good job." Mike smirked again, but it was his usual one this time and he felt the pride his Alpha had in him.

He went to go stand in between Adam and Chris. "Now who's the fucken show off?" Alex muttered, grinning at Mike. Mike grinned back at his friend before pointing to his chest, which was covered with blood -his and Jeremy's. "You fuckers aren't going to attack me, are you?" Alex just rolled his eyes and Chris snickered.

"Before we move on, I want everyone to know that I'm bringing Griffin out here; the only way you're excused is if you have pups and you don't want them to witness this." Randy warned, his words innocent enough that the pups wouldn't know what he was talking but everyone else understood the words loud and clear.

Over the protest of the older pups, parents had them say goodbye to their Alpha before being marched home.

"John, Adam, go get Griffin," Randy ordered, motioning for Justin and Evan to sit on his left side.

"As you all know, Griffin was excommunicated from the pack for hunting and killing human women," Randy went on as Adam and John dragged Griffin out from behind the tree's on the other side of the clearing; he was gagged and his hands and feet were wrapped in silver chains.

"He will be executed tonight, in front of everyone. I want everyone to understand that this is what happens when you break our oldest laws. Humans are not prey; they're not deer out grazing for us to pick off one by one.

"Almost all of us are at least part human," Randy said, and he put his power into his words. Griffin whimpered and tried to move away from it, but with his hands and feet bound, he couldn't go anywhere.

"And even if we weren't, they don't deserve to be hunted down like that. And if that's not enough to convince you, think about this: they out number us almost seven to one. If they decide to come looking for us and decide to hurt us, they will succeed. And we will be wiped out as if we never existed.

"And if that _still_ isn't enough to convince you; understand this: I will deal with anyone who breaks that the law the same way I will deal with Griffin tonight. Unless it is in defense of yourself, your mate's or family's life -or the pack- there is no excuse for what he did."

With those last words, Randy went over to Griffin and gripped his hair; his face was set, blank. He would get no pleasure from this, but it had to be done to protect the pack -and the humans who lived all around them.

His claws slashed through Griffin's neck, the muffled cries audible to everyone gathered. They sliced through skin, muscles and tendon before Griffin bleed out, leaving Randy almost cover from the chest down in blood. He finished the job grimly, holding Griffin's head so everyone could see it before he dropped it on the ground next to his body.

Randy turned and faced the pack, his skin red and his eyes green and glowing. "Understand?" He asked softly, his voice quiet, but no less powerful because of it.

Almost as one, the pack dropped to their knees and murmured their agreement and after a minute those closest to him did the same. Standing there, he had never felt more the Alpha -or more alone.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N:** Sorry this took a little bit to write; I wanted it to go in a completely different direction and the muses wanted something else. Once we talked it out, it was all good. Hope you like, peeps.

**A/N2:** Thanks again to everyone for the reviews/favorites/alerts. I'm glad everyone is enjoying this so much. **candy_belle**, hope you like this chapter as much as the last, and I'm starting the new MMG one shot in a little bit. Special thanks to: **energy_purple**, I hope this week goes better then the last one for you and enjoy the new chapter. The muses love your feedback and they're still strutting around from the last one.

Justin sat on the ground, watching as the _weervolven_ chased each other around, rough housing. Randy made his way through the pack, stopping to "talk" to everyone that was there.

"An Alpha's job is never done," Chris said, going over to stand next the newborns. "They'll be going hunting after this," he continued, looking over at Alex who was talking to Mike and Riley.__"It's another chance for the pack to bond."

Alex stood up and after petting Mike and Riley, headed back over to his mate and the newest members of the pack.

"What are we up to for the rest of the night?" Alex asked, resting his hand on Chris's lower back. Chris smirked but before he could say anything Randy trotted over to them.

Chris and Alex crouched down so they were even with Randy when he came over to talk to them. He rubbed his muzzle against both their cheeks before turning to do the same with Evan.

Evan tensed up a little, but relaxed once he realized what was going on. Randy turned to Justin and nuzzled his neck before lightly biting it. Justin was unable to stop the shiver of desire but he managed to stop himself from completely losing it.

_**Sabin, can you guys watch Justin and Evan for the night? **_Randy asked, looking slightly apologetic. **_I know you usually go hunting, but maybe you could bring them with you?_**

Justin and Evan both looked shock; Alex guessed that they didn't know they'd be able to hear Randy talking to them. _**What's wrong guys, a little freaked? **_Alex snickered.

This time Justin just rolled his eyes and Evan glared at him.

"Yeah, it's not a problem," Chris assured their Alpha. "Don't know what we're doing yet, but keeping track of them is no big deal."

"I feel like we're two," Evan mumbled, looking down at the grass. "I know," Justin sighed. "Wonder when we can be trusted by ourselves."

"Probably not for a while yet," Alex said cheerfully as he laid down in the grass. "Newborns usually stay with their Makers for years before they can go out on their own."

_**I'll come by in the morning, **_Randy told Chris, ignoring the other three for now. **_I need to talk to Justin._**

_**Talk, fuck his brains out, whatever,**_ Chris teased. Randy playfully snapped at him before getting serious again.

_**I need to talk to you soon -and everyone else, **_Randy said. **_Matt had some news that you guys should know._**

_**Is everything alright? **_Chris asked, running a hand through Randy's fur.

_**Yeah, I know we can handle this, **_Randy told him his vice firm. **_But we will need to discuss strategy. It'll hold for a couple days, though._**

Chris nodded and stood up. If his Alpha said they could handle it, he believed him. Besides, Chris had a good idea what the problem might be.

_**I'm going to come for you in the morning, **_Randy assured Justin. **_But I need to do this first. _**He nuzzled Justin again before running over to the pack.

The vampires watched as Randy howled, starting the hunt and led them into the trees, Ted on his right and The Three ranging behind him.

Justin knew that the pack would always come first, but he still wanted Randy with everything that he was.

The next morning, Chris was sitting on the front porch when Evan wandered out of the house. Chris hoped John would get his ass into gear soon, Evan was started to look a little ragged around the edges and Chris knew it was only a matter of time before one of them snapped.

"Where is everyone?" Evan asked as he leaned against the railing. He looked around the front yard, not even sure what he was looking for.

"Alex went to drop Justin off at Randy's," Chris said, smiling a little. "I'm sure everyone else will be by at some point."

"Can I ask you something?" Evan said, a little hesitant. "Of course." Chris assured him, curious.

"Justin. He's mated to Randy, isn't he?" "Yes," Chris answered, smirking to himself. He could almost guarantee he knew where this conversation was going.

Alex broke through the trees, running full out for the house, a black streak on one side of him and a brown one on the other. Evan looked over as the three of them closed in on the porch.

Alex touched the steps just seconds before the other two. "Ha! I knew I could beat you two."

_**I can't believe he beat us, **_Jay said mournfully. **_I'm never going to hear the end of this._**

Jeff laughed, looking over his shoulder for his brother. _**Matt? **_Jeff called, tensing up when he realized he wasn't right behind him._** Where are you?**_

_**I'm right here, Jeffro,**_ Matt reassured him, walking with Adam. He broke the trees and waved to his brother.

Jeff barked happily and turned back to everyone else. Jay Changed back and sprawled out, leaning his weight on his elbows. Jeff laid down next to Jay, his eyes keeping track of where everyone was.

"How do you know when you're mated to someone?" Evan asked suddenly, looking at Chris.

He tried to look serious, but it was hard when he could feel Alex's amusement through their bond and on top of that, both Alex and Jay were laughing hysterically. Jay was doubled over, tears streaming down his face.

_**Holy fuck, I hope I get to see it when John finally gets his ass into gear, **_Alex told him gleefully. **_Evan's already figured out what's going on and he's going to be pissed when he sees Cena again._**

Adam and Matt walked up to them, arranging themselves around everyone else. Alex was sitting on the step below Chris, in between his legs.

"Well, for me, as soon as Alex was any where near me, I felt it," Chris answered, resting his hand on the back of Alex's neck. "Even before I saw him, I knew someone was following me. I wasn't scared, though; I kept staying behind and walking around by myself so I could get a look at whoever it was.

"Once I did see him, I could barely keep my hands to myself. I wanted to drag him onto the floor and fuck him into nest week -and that was before he even said anything to me," Chris hesitated; he disliked talking about it but he figured Evan needed to understand that mating wasn't just about sex.

"The moment I saw him leaning against the wall and he looked over at me and our eyes met, I just knew that he was it for me and I knewhe was meant for me, that we would be always be a part of each other. Everything changed in that second and I've never regretted it."

Evan nodded seriously and wondered how in the hell this had happened to him. Forget everything else that had happened so far, he couldn't be mated to a werewolf. He just couldn't. Forever didn't happen any more; he had the proof of that with his own parents. Maybe it worked out fine for his new -he started to think 'friends' but something insisted that these weren't friends, that they wouldn't run out on him like all his other friends had. This was his family, his pack and they would never leave him behind. They would never trade him in for someone younger and cuter and better in bed.

He shoved that last thought aside viciously, this was not the time or place to think about his ex boyfriend. He needed to do something about this thing he had for John. Even his name had Evan's heart skipping a beat.

"What if it's a mistake?" Evan asked desperately, his voice cracking. "I mean, what if whoever's mated to whoever else isn't what that person needs? Or should even want?"

"Evan, look at me," Adam said quietly, waiting for the newborn to look over before he went on. "Mating isn't a choice or even a decision you can make. It's not like a marriage or living with somebody. Mating is forever; it's a tie that goes down to your soul. He was chosen for you and that's it for you -for both of you.

"You can fight the mating, but it's not a good idea. I fought my mating for six months," Adam told him, running his hand up and down jay's back when he came to sit next to him.

"For six months, I got angrier and angrier, my temper was short; I fought constantly with everyone. And I couldn't stand to be touched by anyone -and by the end of the six months, I didn't even want to be around anyone except for Jay.

"I was snapping at people -including my own Alpha. I was getting punished every other day for being disrespectful and I failed out school. I had no one to turn to, to talk to. My old pack wanted nothing to do with the mating. My father had been the one to tell me to fight it and even when he saw how miserable I was, he encouraged it. It wasn't hard to convince me; I believed that my father knew what was best.

"I felt alone and desperate and I missed my best friend. I missed being around him, I missed the sound of his voice and that stupid face he made when he was pissed. Hell, I even missed the way he would whine when he got tired."

"I don't whine," Jay murmured, nuzzling Adam's neck. Adam curled an arm around Jay, holding him against his side. He never took his eyes off of Evan though; he wanted to make sure that the newborn understood what he was saying was nothing but the truth. A truth he couldn't escape, no matter how much he might want to.

"Even worse then all that; worse then they way I felt, the way I was treating everyone, was the way it was affecting Jay. He got more and more depressed, he stopped laughing, stopped talking to people. He stopped being Jay. I watched as it got worse and worse. He wouldn't eat or play or do anything. He dropped out of school 'cause he stopped caring enough to get up in the morning."

"I didn't want anything if I couldn't have you," Jay remembered, and there was an old pain buried in his voice. Adam pulled Jay onto his lap and folded him into his embrace, resting his head on the top of Jay's. Jay sighed and closed his eyes, letting himself be coddled for once.

"And then one day when Jay actually went outside, I was there skulking around the outside of Jay's place, trying to get as close as I could to him with actually being with him. I followed him; thought I was being slick, keeping down wind and out of sight so he wouldn't know I was there."

"I knew you were there." Jay told him, rubbing his cheek against Adam's chest. "Of course you did, Angel," Adam said, an amused fondness and love in his voice.

"He ran into an old friend of ours, Jesse," and now there was a deep regret in Adam's voice, a sorrow that had never gone away. "Jesse moved away a few years before that and he had come back to visit. He didn't know about the mating, didn't know how volatile I had become. He did what any pack-mate and friend would do: when he was how upset Jay was, he hugged him.

"That's it. Just a hug and I think he might have patted Jay's back. I don't remember that part of it, to be honest. I saw someone else put his hands on Jay, on what was _mine_ and I snapped. I completely lost it.

"I went after him and the only thing I can remember is Jay, crying and putting his hand on my shoulder. I looked down at him and I couldn't fight it any more. I hugged him and told him I was done fighting this, that I couldn't stay away from him any more.

"But it was too late for Jesse; he died a couple days later. I killed him. I lost control and injured him so badly that he couldn't recover from it. I was exiled from the pack, I was lucky they didn't kill me -or Jay since we had been mated by the time our old Alpha passed the sentence. I think they thought it would be more of a punishment that way, to be without a pack is the worst thing imaginable for most wolves.

"But even without the pack, I didn't care too much; I had Jay with me, finally and it was enough. We got lucky, luckier then I deserved. We ran into Randy's dad in Virginia and he spoke to Vince -the old Alpha- and we got admitted to the pack.

"Not a day goes by where I don't think of Jesse. It's my burden and the price I paid for fighting the mating. But even with the guilt over it and the regret, I would do it again -in a heartbeat. For Jay, I would do worse then that and not even think twice about it.

"He was meant for you, Evan, and there's no getting around that. The faster you deal with that and accept it, the better for you -and him."

Evan nodded, his mouth dry. He was already drawn to John, that much he couldn't deny. And as he watched Adam comfort Jay, watched Chris exchange a look with Alex and then lean in give him a quick kiss, he realized that this was always what he had wanted. Someone to love him no matter what happened.

But did John want the same thing? Maybe he didn't even want Evan for a mate.

Evan took a deep breath -unnecessary, but it made him feel calmer. He decided to wait and talk to John before he completely panicked. They just needed to talk and then everything would work itself out, he hoped.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: **This takes place during the first half of the last chapter, when Alex and Justin left to go to Randy's. Just so you know, peeps.

**A/N2:** Thanks to everyone for reading this and for the feedback/reviews on here and fanfiction. I appreciate it so much, and I'm glad everyone's been enjoying it so far. Let me know if you guys are still liking this, peeps.

"Why are you bringing me over?" Justin asked nervously, biting his lip. "I thought Randy was going to pick me up."

"He was but he asked this morning for one of us to walk you over," Alex answered easily, smiling a little. "I wanted to talk to you, anyway, so it was good timing all around."

"About what?" Justin asked, suspiciously eying Alex. He might not know Alex very well yet but any time anyone said 'I want to talk to you' it hardly ever ended good.

Alex hesitated; he knew this was probably going to upset Justin, but he thought it was necessary. He had talked it over with Chris the night before and he agreed with Alex that one of them should talk to the newborns.

After some arguing and 'negotiations', they had decided that Alex would talk to Justin and Chris would talk to Evan when he got the chance.

"Did you ever sleep with anyone after you were Turned?"

Justin frowned, considering the question. "I usually ended up bunking with Evan when we had some place to crash."

Alex stared at him for a minute before snickering and shaking his head. "Not what I meant. Let's try this: did you ever fuck anyone after you got Turned?"

Justin shook his head, glancing away from him. "No. I, uh, heard Wade a couple times, though." He flinched when he mentioned his Maker but tried to focus on the conversation.

Alex nodded; he wasn't really surprised by Justin's answer.

"Why do you want to know?"

"You know you and Randy are mated, right?" Alex countered with another question.

"Yeah, he told me." Justin answered softly, unable to stop from smiling.

"Mating's very sexual," Alex went on, smirking when he saw the embarrassed look on Justin's face. "It's not just about sex, but believe me when I tell you you're gonna spend a good part of the next couple days pinned in between Randy and the nearest hard surface."

"I hate to tell you but I know how sex works," Justin told him, trying to laugh through his embarrassment. "I don't think that much has changed."

"Well, you're a vampire now," Alex said calmly. He watched Justin bite his lip and look at the ground. "I know you don't want to think about it, you want to ignore it unless you're feeding but it's not going to work. Besides the obvious, during sex you're going to want to bite him -and hard. Hard enough that you could hurt him if you're not careful."

"But I've never done that before..." Justin trailed off when he realized what he was going to say.

"You don't have to bite someone; you'll get off either way," Alex went on, his voice quiet and serious as they made the walk. "But it won't feel complete to you unless you do. You'll be left feeling vaguely unsatisfied, like you're still waiting for something to happen.

"The first time Chris and I had sex he was still human, and I bit him hard enough that I fractured his collarbone. After that, I made sure I paid attention to what was going on when I got off so I didn't bite him or feed off of him for too long."

"Chris was human when you met him?" Justin asked as he tried to process what he had just been told.

"Yeah," Alex said after hesitating for a minute. He didn't want to lie to Justin, but he also didn't know how much he wanted Justin to know right now.

"I was out running an...errand for my Maker when I saw Chris there," Alex smirked, remembering the way he had been fascinated with Chris, how surprised he was that a human could hold his interest that way.

"He stayed that way for almost two months before I Turned him," he went on, remembering that night as if it was yesterday.

Looking back on it now, he knew it had been inevitable that he Turn Chris, but then he had fought the good fight about it. Alex laughed at himself, shaking his head.

_**What's so funny? **_Chris asked, curious as to what had his mate in such a good mood.

_**Just remembering how stubborn I was about Turning you,**_ Alex answered, still amused.

_**Ah, you mean when you decided it would be better if we just stayed the way we were? **_Chris teased, happy that his mate was able to joke about something that used to upset him.

_**Yeah, smart ass, that's what I meant, **_Alex said, smiling.

He was lucky that everything had turned out as good as it did; and better then he thought he deserved most of the time. Alex blocked that thought before it pissed him off and had Chris worried about what was going on.

He focused back on his conversation with Justin.

"Chances are, even if you bit Randy as hard as you could, you wouldn't severely hurt him. He's not human, after all. Werewolves are just as strong as we are, but they bleed more then we do. And, they'll never admit it but we heal better -especially from a vampire bite.

"Like I said, chances are against you actually hurting him; Randy's an Alpha, after all. That means he's stronger then most wolves, he's more powerful and his healing rate is higher, too. But you still need to talk to him about it. You never know what could happen; life's fucked up and anything could happen. You know that as well as I do."

Justin sighed unhappily; he knew Alex was right. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, everything had changed when he was Turned and he needed to start remembering that.

As Randy's house came into view, he thought maybe that wasn't an entirely bad thing.

Randy scratched Jeff's ears gently as Matt told him they were going to head back to the border unless he needed them to stay.

"No, everything should be good. You guys can head back; I know Jeff's probably getting antsy." Randy told them, smiling when Jeff whined and nodded his head.

He tensed when he saw Alex and Justin walk out of the trees. Alex said something to Justin -he was too far away to hear what it was- and then watched as Justin smiled and headed towards him.

"That's our cue, Jeffro," Matt murmured, turning and heading for Alex with Jeff trotting right behind him.

Within minutes, Justin was standing in front of him, nervously shifting his feet.

"Hey." Justin said quietly, looking at Randy shyly.

"Hi." Randy smiled, reaching over and tugging Justin closer and leaning in for a kiss.

Justin moaned and clutched at Randy's shoulders as the kiss got deeper. He was gasping for breath when Randy pulled away and started nibbling at his neck.

Randy kissed him again, his tongue tracing Justin's fangs and making the vampire shudder. Justin could dimly remember the talk he had with Alex only minutes before and he struggled to clear his head long enough to warn Randy.

"Randy, I -" Justin broke off when Randy moved to his neck again and started biting him, then using his tongue to soothe away the sting.

"What?" Randy rasped, pulling back and maneuvering him until he was laying down in the grass. Randy shifted so he was pinning Justin to the ground with his weight.

"I...wanna...bite..." Justin managed to stammer out before his eyes rolled back into his hand when Randy started playing with his nipples.

Randy pulled back, smirking at Justin's whimper when he stopped what he was doing. "You want to bite me?" Randy questioned, his voice dropping to a low growl when Justin turned his head in a clear sign of submission.

Justin didn't know why, but showing his neck felt right. He wasn't afraid of Randy at all and he could tell Randy wasn't angry but for some reason he had this urge to show Randy that he knew he was dominant to him.

"Not now," Justin gasped when Randy trailed his fingers down to the waist band of the jeans he had on. In a second they were gone, shredded by Randy's claws and then ripped away from his legs. "Later."

Randy frowned for before he realized what Justin was saying. "Oh, you mean when you cum," Randy smirked again and leaned down to rasp in Justin's ear. "Go ahead, babe. Bite me as hard as you fucken want."

Justin moaned again and the next few minutes were a flurry of movements that ended up with Justin's legs spread and Randy thrusting into him, making both of them groan.

"You're mine," Randy growled, his eyes flashing. He rolled his hips hitting Justin's prostate and making the newborn moan. "Mine. Understand?"

"Yes. _Jou_," Justin babbled, too far gone to realize he was speaking Afrikaans."_Moet nie ophou nie_. _Asseblief, stop nie_."

"That's it, babe," Randy encouraged, reaching in between them to grab Justin's dick. Justin moaned again, his eyes turning black and Randy licked his lips at the sight of Justin's fangs sliding down.

He leaned down until he was right next to Justin's ear. "Go ahead, Justin. Bite me."

Justin whimpered and turned his head, biting down on Randy's neck when he came. He tasted Randy's blood and knew nothing would ever taste as good as his mate did.

Randy hissed in pleasure, closing his eyes. At the feel of Justin tightening around him when he orgasm, Randy felt himself going over the edge.

A few minutes later, Randy lifted his head, feeling slightly dizzy. He shook his head to clear and looked down at his mate's blissed out face.

He nuzzled Justin's neck, a happy rumble coming from his chest and jarring Justin into wakefulness.

"Mine," Randy repeated softly, looking into Justin's eyes. "Yours," Justin agreed sighing happily.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N:** Here's the new one, peeps. Enjoy!

**A/N2_: _**Like always, thanks to everyone for reading and leaving feedback, etc. I appreciate it beyond the telling. I hope you guys enjoy this one as much as you did the others.

Chris glanced over to where Evan was pacing around the porch, constantly looking over the yard and woods. Anyone could see that he was waiting for John to show up. Adam and Jay had gone to walk with Matt and Jeff before they headed back to the border.

"Hey, Ev, come here for a minute," Chris called, figuring he might as well talk to the newborn now. With one last look over his shoulder, Evan went over to where Chris was sitting on the railing, facing the yard.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," Chris hesitated but then mentally shrugged; being blunt came easier to him then just hinting at it. "Have you fucked anyone since you were Turned?"

Evan stared at Chris for a minute, dumbfounded before smiling a little. "No, and to be honest, you're not my type and even if you were, I would not want Alex after me."

"Don't worry, I wasn't propositioning you; you're too short for me," Chris grinned at the look of disgust on Evan's face. "I was asking for a reason."

"He's not that much taller," Evan muttered. "He's only got an inch or two on me."

Chris raised an eyebrow and grinned again. "That inch or two makes the difference, trust me."

Evan burst into laughter, he couldn't help it; it was just too ridiculous not to. "Alright, alright, you win. Why'd you ask?"

"Mostly 'cause I wanted to know if you'd be able to control yourself," Chris said, turning serious. "Mating's very sexual; not just about sex but at the same time," he smirked and thought of Alex.

"Let's just say, you'll be spending the next little while pinned between John and a bed -or whatever else happens to be available. But that's not what I wanted to tell you.

"When you and John _finally_ have sex, you're going to want to bite him -and hard. Hard enough to do some damage to him. He's not human, so I doubt you'll do any where near what Alex did to me when we first had sex. But you still should be careful.

"You don't have to bite him, I mean, you'll get off either way, but... It won't feel complete to you until you do. You'll be vaguely dissatisfied; like some took the last snack you wanted. Or like you didn't get that one big Christmas present you wanted.

"Just be careful is all I want you to do. And tell John; so he doesn't freak out if you latch onto his neck -or whatever else happens to be within biting distance."

Evan nodded slowly, trying to not to panic. "Wait. Alex hurt you?" Evan asked, not only because he wanted to know, but also he was trying to by time before he had to think about what Chris had just told him.

"Well, he didn't _hurt me_, hurt me. I was still human the first time we had sex," Chris remembered, smiling.

"He warned me before hand that he would probably bite me, so I told him to bite me as hard as he wanted to," Chris went on, shrugging as if it wasn't that big of a deal.

"Alex did and he accidentally broke my collar bone. I always thought it was worth the trade off."

_**I've always said you were the dumbest smart person I ever knew, **_Alex told him but there was amusement in his voice instead of anger or loathing.

_**Trust me, fucking you was definitely worth a broken bone, **_Chris assured him_,_ practically purring at the memory of their first time. _**Hell, I'd do it now if I had to every time.**_

_**Yeah, yeah, **_Alex said but Chris knew he was pleased that he would still sacrifice that much just to sleep with him, even after all the time they'd been together.

He glanced around the yard, noting that Alex was sprawled on the ground looking up at the sky, Mike next to him, still in his fur. Mike stretched before collapsing next to him.

"What's wrong, Mike? Tired from a long day of playing fat ass?" Alex asked, elbowing his side.

_**Number one, my ass is fucken perfect, **_Mike said, his voice superior. **_Number two, fuck off. _**

Alex rolled his eyes and then narrowed them when he saw someone coming through the woods.

_**Well, well, looks like it's fun time for Alex,**_ he told Chris gleefully, getting up and walking over to his mate as a light brown wolf came out the trees.

Chris smiled and shook his head and shifted over a little so Alex could lean against the railing next to him. Mike got up and trotted over, laying back down next Alex, keeping his eyes trained on the wolf slowly making his way to the house. Chris looked down at him and he swore Mike was wearing the same gleeful look as Alex.

John Changed when he was about twenty feet from the house, and started toward the group, keeping his eyes fixed on Evan the whole time. His heart was thundering and he felt like he was getting ready to jump from a cliff without being able to see where he was going to land.

"Hi, guys," John said, his eyes never leaving Evan. "What's going on?"

"You know, same old shit," Alex answered, raising an eyebrow and inclining his head toward the two of them, who were staring at each other. Chris shrugged and rolled his eyes.

"I was just -"

_**Acting like a fucken tool, **_Mike told him, snickering.

_**Shut it, Mizanin, **_John growled, turning to look at him briefly.

Mike just yawned at him, looking bored.

"That's it," Evan said, fisting his hands in his hair. "I can't fucken take this any more. My head feels like it's going to implode and it's all your fault."

Evan stormed forward, shoving against John's chest. John fell back a half step, caught by surprise.

"As if getting turned into some blood sucking fiend wasn't enough -"

"I feel offended by that," Alex said, pouting a little. _**Yeah, right, **_Mike snorted. **_You wouldn't be offended if someone had sex in front of you._**

" -now, I have to deal with this mating shit. I got everyone telling me how great it is and how it's forever -which, to be honest, I don't even believe in- and the one person who's supposed to be telling me this is no where to be found.

"He can't even talk to me! I want some guy whose name I don't even know, to hold me down and fuck me into next week! That's not fucken normal, I know it's not. But even if it was, you're out in the woods fucking off, so it doesn't even matter what I want!

"And, you know, if you don't want me, the least you could do is tell me up front instead of just ignoring me for days. I mean, I got the message, alright? I'm not what you want. Fine! You hear me? That's fine. I don't care, at all. You're not even my type.

"So you can just go do whatever, I don't care. I DON'T CARE!"

Shouting the last words, Evan stormed off, heading for the woods, leaving behind his very confused mate and his very amused pack-mates.

John stared after him in shock before looking at the other three helplessly.

"Are you that fucken stupid?" Alex asked incredulously when John just stood there. "Go after him, dumb ass," Chris finished and Mike got up and head butted John until he stumbled forward a step.

John nodded and started off at a jog for the trees.

_**Would it be wrong if we followed them to see what happens? **_Mike asked, wagging his tail a little.

"Yes," Chris said firmly when he noticed the look in Alex's eyes. "Besides, we should be able to hear them from here; they didn't get that far." He added practically.

"I love way you think, babe," Alex told him, settling down and getting comfortable so he could hear what was going on.

_**Me, too...babe,**_ Mike said, laughing.

Chris just rolled his eyes and motioned for them to quiet down so he could hear, too.

John caught up with Evan, reaching for his arm so he could stop him. "Hey, look, I'm sorry, OK? I wasn't ignoring you, I just wanted -" "You wanted someone else, I get it," Evan interrupted, his voice bitter.

"I wasn't going to say that," John told him, absently rubbing his thumb across Evan's arm. "I didn't want anyone; I wasn't looking for a mate. I was just trying to give us both a chance to get used to this. And I guess I failed miserably."

"It's OK," Evan said after a minute, his voice quiet. "I overreacted, I have a habit of that. I just -" He shook his head, unable to finish the sentence.

John tilted Evan's face up until he was looking at him. "I know this didn't have a great start, but you're my mate and I'm yours. We're stuck with each other for good. You can tell me."

"Do you even want me?" Evan blurted out. "If you don't -"

His words were cut off as John took his mouth in rough kiss. "Does that answer you're question?" John growled, panting.

Evan nodded, his eyes wide. "Now do you want me?" John asked, his shifting color until they were brown and glowing.

Evan nodded again, baring his neck in a sign of submission that drove John crazy. He backed Evan into a tree, biting the newborn's neck and licking the marks he made.

"Oh, fuck me," Evan moaned when John ripped off his jeans after shredding them his claws. He wrapped his hand around Evan's dick, leaning down to bite his shoulder hard enough to leave a mark.

"Fuck me sideways," Evan added, whimpering and closing his eyes.

"Oh, I will," John assured him, smiling deviously his dimples showing. "I definitely will."

"See, I told you," Alex said as they went inside the house. "A screamer. You guys owe me $50 each."

_**Shut up, Shelley, **_Mike said, offhandedly. **_He's never going to let us forget this, is he?_**

No, he's not," Chris told him, smiling at his mate. "He never forgets anything."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: **I'm so sorry this took so long to post. My internet is fucked up and comcast is jerking me around about it. Don't be surprised if this ends up getting posted with a ton of other stories at the same time, lol. Thanks for everyone who's still reading this, even if it is taking forever right now. I really appreciate it and I hope you guys enjoy this.

Mike circled around his house one more time before he headed for Sabin and Shelley's house.

He hadn't seen Alex since yesterday afternoon and he was starting to wonder where he was. He hadn't crashed at his house like he usually did and the last couple days Alex had been scarce enough that Mike was starting to think something was wrong.

When he came within sight of the vampires house, Mike forgot his worries for a minute when he saw Shelley standing with his back to him, talking to Adam and Jay. His tail wagged briefly before he started running for Shelley at full speed.

Mike jumped up to hit Shelley's back and at the last second Shelley moved out of the way, making him crash into the side of the house.

_**Motherfucker, **_Mike cursed, shaking his head a little.

Ignoring Adam and Jay, who were snickering uncontrollably, and Shelley, who was outright laughing at him, he Changed and looked up at his pack-mates ruefully.

"You need to work on your game, Mikey," Shelley smirked. "I heard you coming from a mile away."

"Fuck off, _'Lexy_," Mike said as he got up and stretched. "I'll get you next time, fucker."

"Where's Chris at?" Jay asked as Mike lounged on the porch steps and he made himself comfortable next to Adam, who was sprawled on the ground in front of the steps.

"He went to go do a run through quick," Alex answered as he jumped up and sat on the railing. "Ted's got some of the younger wolves checking the borders and stuff while everything's quiet and Chris wanted to shadow a few to make sure they were doing the job right.

"I think he's hoping one of them will realize someone's following them and try to attack him," Alex said, shaking his head. "He's been restless lately, and he's itching for a good fight."

"None of them are gonna give him a good fight," Adam observed, putting his hand on Jay's ankle when he put his feet on Adam's lap. "Especially once they realize who he is."

Alex shrugged, looking through the trees. "I know, and I'm sure he does, too. He was thinking about seeing if one of you guys wanted to spar and then he decided to go see how the newbies were doing."

"I'm up for a little sparring," Adam offered, cracking his neck. "I've been wanting a good fight myself."

Alex nodded, understanding. Everything being quiet was good for business; it meant no one was causing trouble, there were no fights, no outside interference. It was good for the pack in general, but it was bad for some of the stronger dominants.

Werewolves, unless they were submissive, were aggressive. They couldn't help it, it was programmed into their DNA -like their height or eye color. The more dominant a wolf was, the higher their aggression level was.

And it wasn't just werewolves, either. Alex could feel his own aggression levels ramping up and he knew he was going to have to spar with someone himself before long.

It was why having so many alphic wolves in the pack could be dangerous; if their Alpha wasn't strong enough to hold them in check, the in fighting would tear the pack apart. Randy was strong enough that he could keep them from fighting if he had to, but he hardly ever needed to do that. They were all close enough that they knew they could count on each other for help if they needed it.

"Hey, do you guys know where Alex is?" Mike asked suddenly.

Adam and Jay exchanged grins before Jay answered. "Uh, he's sitting right there, Mike."

Mike scowled, his eyes glinting. "Not him, I meant Riley."

_**Mike's finally buying a clue, **_Alex told Chris, amused. **_How's it going?_**

_**It went alright, **_Chris answered. **_I'll be there soon. Let me know if Mike goes crazy before I get there._**

Alex snickered. _**If he loses it, you'll probably hear from there.**_

"Chris is on his way back," Alex announced and then grinned as something caught his eye. "And it looks like we're about to get some entertainment."

Mike looked up, disinterested until he realized it was Riley headed for them. He sat up, his head tilted to the side as he watched him.

_**It's almost pathetic, **_Adam told Jay. **_He has no fucken clue what's going on. At least I knew when I was caught._**

_**Yeah, Addy, that makes you better, **_Jay replied, rolling his eyes and patting Adam's arm.

Just as Riley came up even with the house, Chris broke the trees and headed for them.

"Hey, guys, what's up?" Riley asked, going to sit next to Mike.

Mike shifted closer to Alex, his eyes never leaving him. He rested his hand on Alex's lower back, leaning into the other man.

"Nothing really," Alex answered, grinning at the sight of Mike almost on top of Riley, and Riley trying to ignore him.

"Just waiting for Chris to get back." Alex continued as his mate jogged up to him and the others.

Chris gave Alex a quick kiss before he sat next to him on the railing.

"How'd it go?" Adam asked, just as amused as Alex.

"Pretty good," Chris answered. "Dan noticed me almost right away; him and Josh had a pretty good double team on me until they realized who I was. Then they were tripping over their feet to apologize.

"I was impressed with Dan, though," Chris went on, looking thoughtful. "He knew I was following them almost right away, and once he has a little more training he'll be an excellent tactician. If I was a newborn or even just less experienced, I would have been in trouble. I want to talk to Randy about having him get some hard core training.

"What's going on here?" Chris asked, smirking. Alex grinned and nodded his head toward Mike and Riley.

"Nothing," Riley answered, looking at Mike out of the corner of his eye. "I just wanted to let you guys know I can't hang out tonight; I've got a date, so.." He trailed off, seemingly oblivious to the rage in Mike's eyes.

"Date," Mike repeated, his eyes starting to glow. Jay elbowed Adam, his face as gleeful as Alex's was. Chris and Adam exchanged grins, thoroughly enjoying their mates reaction and Mike's.

"Yeah," Riley said, his voice casual but his eyes were calculating.

_**He's doing it on purpose, **_Alex said, new respect for the younger man in his voice. **_He wants Mike riled up._**

_**He probably figures it's the only way to get Mike to go after him. **_Chris agreed, laughing a little. **_Mike's being played and he doesn't even know it._**

Jay glanced at Mike's enraged expression before he had to turn away to hide his grin. _**Think he knows?**_

_**What? That Riley's got him on the line like he's a damn fish? I doubt it, **_Adam snorted, stroking his hand down Jay's back when he moved to sit next to him. _**It's funny he doesn't realize he's mated, though. By all rights he should be ready to kill someone by now.**_

_**I don't know, **_Jay said, looking serious for a minute. _**Randy told me once his grandparents didn't know they were mated until after they slept together. This isn't that different.**_

_**That's true, **_Adam agreed, watching both Mike and Riley with interested amusement.

"I'm gonna hang out with AJ for a while," Riley went on, feeling smug at the look on Mike's face. "At my place and then we might go have a few drinks in town."

"Date," Mike repeated again, this time there was a definite snarl in his voice.

"Actually, I should get going now," Riley went on cheerfully, standing and stretching before he Changed and headed for the woods.

_**See you guys tomorrow, **_he called back before he disappeared from sight.

"That was interesting," Alex commented, smirking at the look on his friend's face. "Wouldn't you agree, Mikey?"

Mike ignored him; he couldn't believe Alex had a _date_. Alex was his, he shouldn't be – Mike stopped dead. Alex was his friend, sure, but that was it. Wasn't it? His best friend, since they were pups, and, OK, he'd have to be blind to underestimate how attractive Alex was, but that didn't mean he wanted him. Did it?

"It's like watching a lion at a zoo," Chris said as Mike paced back and forth in front of them, muttering to himself.

"You know he's going to lose it and attack someone, you just don't know when," Alex added, leaning toward Chris when he put his hand on his lower back.

"I bet AJ's going to get it once Mike thinks his way through this," Jay told them. "Hopefully, he's smart enough to keep his hands to himself or Riley's not going to be the only one busting his ass."

"I doubt Riley's going to let AJ even hug him," Adam put in, looking at Mike thoughtfully as he worked himself into a rage. "He knows what he wants and it's not him. He also knows if Mike gets there and he's got someone else's scent all over him, Mike's going to hunt them down and kill them."

"A DATE!" Mike yelled before Changing and running into the woods.

"Well, that was a lot quicker then I thought it would be," Alex said, raising an eyebrow at the growling he could still hear even though Mike was almost fifty feet away from them.

"Yeah, I thought it would take him at least an hour," Jay agreed, looking at Chris hopefully when his stomach rumbled. He smiled charmingly at the vampire.

Chris laughed before vaulting over the railing onto the porch and heading for the front door, Alex behind him. "One of these days there's not gonna be any food here and then what'll you do?" Alex asked, laughing.

"Oh, I don't know," Jay said as he followed Adam inside. "I bet vampires don't taste that bad."

Mike ran full out for Alex's house, his adrenaline pumping. Now that he realized he wanted Alex, he couldn't believe AJ was trying to put his hands on him.

He Changed and then stormed into the yard. His eyes narrowed as he caught AJ's scent and followed it to the front porch. He barely registered the fact that Ted and Cody were there as he started growling.

Alex glanced over and had to swallow his smile at the sight of his best friend, enraged and completely focused on AJ.

AJ looked over when he heard the growling and the wind shifted and he could smell Mike. "What -" That was all he managed to get out before Mike had him against the wall by his throat.

"Mine," Mike snarled, his claws slicing out and cutting AJ's neck. "_Mine_. Understand?"

AJ nodded franticly, unable to say anything with Mike's hand like a vise around his neck.

"Never. Go. Near. Him. Again," Mike spit out, each word a growling curse.

AJ nodded again, gasping for breath when Mike let him go. He took off without even looking back.

Mike turned to Alex, his power flaring out and making Cody flinch a little, but it wasn't enough to wipe the grin off his face. Or Ted's either, for that matter.

He got in Alex's face, his eyes glowing. He backed Alex into a the wall before he spoke. "Mine. You're mine."

Alex swallowed and nodded eagerly, unable to believe that it had finally worked. Mike finally had him where he wanted to be. In a gesture that wasn't natural to him, and if it was anyone other then Mike he never would have done it, he bared his neck in submission.

Mike growled again, this time in desire and he bit Alex's neck before attacking his mouth in a rough kiss. Pulling back, he grabbed Alex's hand and dragged him inside, slamming the door shut behind them.

"Well, it's about fucken time," Ted said, throwing an arm around Cody's shoulders as they turned to go. "Took him long enough."

"It really did," Cody agreed as they walked off the porch. He wrapped his arm around Ted's waist, loving how safe he always felt when his mate was holding him.

"What do we do now? I'm going to guess any plans we might have had are gone." Cody pouted a little, mostly because he knew Teddy thought he was cute when he did.

"Oh, I think I can find _something_ for us to do, Baby Boy," Ted leered as he steered them towards their house. "I'm confident that ya'll approve."

Cody laughed, forgetting everything except for the wolf next to him.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: **Thanks to everyone who's keeping up with this, even though my internet issues are making it difficult for me to post. I really appreciate it and I'm glad people are still enjoying this.

Chris circled his opponent, keeping his eyes on the person in front of him. He was slightly out of breath and sweating, but Chris knew better then to think he was going to get an easy win.

They locked up again, each one trying to get the upper hand. They broke off, backing up when neither one could get the advantage.

Chris snarled, his fangs gleaming in the light as he rushed Adam, trying to get him stumble backwards. Adam held still, bracing himself and absorbing Chris weight without moving. Grabbing Chris by the neck, Adam picked him up and swung him at one of the trees that surrounded them.

But Chris wiggled out and slipped behind Adam, pushing him and sending him face first into the tree. Adam grunted, spinning around to face the smaller vampire, his glowing eyes meeting Chris's black ones.

Adam growled as they circled each other again, neither one of them willing to concede defeat.

Alex watched them, leaning against a tree a few yards away. Bruises and cuts dotted his upper body, already healing, from his own bout against Jay.

He felt better then he had even a few hours ago; his brawl with Jay had lasted almost an hour and had taken both of them to near exhaustion -or as close to exhaustion as a vampire and a werewolf could get.

Jay had won, barely. Alex had known Jay would win; just like Chris knew eventually Adam would win. Adam was ranked higher then Chris and they never forgot that, no matter what they were doing.

But this wasn't about the winning, it was about the fight that led up to it. They needed a fight that would take every piece of aggressiveness they had and used it up, and kept going until they were barely able to move. No matter how bloody or messy it got, until they were both satisfied.

Chris and Adam had been fighting for almost two hours by the time he and Jay had gotten done and came to watch. Alex could feel his adrenaline start pumping again as Chris went after Adam again. He shifted his feet, his eyes following Chris's every move. A few feet away he could smell Jay's own excitement start kicking in.

By the time Adam actually got Chris pinned to the ground, Alex was insanely turned on. His fangs were fully extended, his eyes were pitch black and he had a hard on he could've cut glass with.

Chris got up from the ground and zeroed in on Alex right away. Striding away from Adam, he grabbed Alex's wrist and dragged him far enough away that the wolves wouldn't be able to hear them, and then immediately backed Alex into a tree.

_**Fuck, 'Lex, **_Chris snarled, attacking his mouth; his own fangs leaving marks on Alex's tongue. Pulling back, he bit Ale's lip, the scent of his blood almost as intoxicating as the sight of him hard and straining against his jeans. **_I could almost hear you getting turned on. How the fuck am I supposed to resist that?_**

Alex moaned, his hands scratching at Chris's back, some of them going deep enough to draw blood. He bit Chris's shoulder, unable to stop himself when his mate was so close.

_**I don't want you to,**_ Alex hissed, lapping at the blood that was on Chris's shoulder. He whimpered when Chris wrapped a hand in his hair and yanked his head back, baring his neck and letting him look into his mate's eyes.

_**That'll never happen, 'Lex,**_ Chris swore, the sight of blood -_his blood_- smeared on his mate's mouth sending a shudder through his body. _**I would die the true death before I would ever be able to resist you.**_

He leaned down and gave Alex a brief, tender kiss that was completely at odds with the fire raging through his system. _**I will always love you. Always. You're mine and nothing will ever change that. Understand?**_

Without waiting for an answer, he dipped his head and bit Alex's neck as hard as he could. Alex moaned, his hips bucking against Chris's. Chris moved back a couple inches, licking the blood from Alex's neck before he tore Alex's pants off.

Stepping back, Chris looked Alex over while he stripped out of his own pants. Smirking, he pressed his body against his mates, kissing Alex again before he hitched Alex's legs around his waist.

_**Please, Chris, **_Alex begged, clawing at his shoulders. **_Fuck me._**

Chris snarled again, his mouth latching on to Alex's neck as he thrusted into him. Alex groaned wildly, his eyes closing. Neither one of them were going to last long, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was getting as close to each other as possible.

When Chris felt Alex start to tighten around him, he lifted his head and licking his lips, made sure his shoulder was close enough so that Alex could reach it when he came. Whimpering, Alex bit Chris, hard enough that Chris grunted and thrust into Alex even harder then he already was.

Once he was done, he let go, his head dropping back against the tree behind them. Chris moved, pulling Alex onto the ground and covering him.

_**You're mine. Mine. Until we both surrender to the true death or the fucken sky falls down. Understand? **_Chris demanded, biting the other side of Alex's neck, moaning as he got off.

_**Yes, **_Alex said, unable to even lift his head. **_And you're mine._**

It seemed fair enough to Chris so he just smiled and gave Alex another quick kiss.

Randy eyed the young wolves standing in front of him speculatively. They weren't lying, but there was still something off about it.

"Why do you want to go to Virginia again?" Randy asked, resting his hand on Justin's lower back when he came outside to sit next to him on the front porch.

"We just want to roam a little," Max explained after him and his brother had greeted their alpha's mate. "I wanna stretch my legs a little and Jeremy wanted to come with me."

Jeremy nodded in agreement when Randy looked at him. "I want to see something besides here before I'm mated."

Randy nodded thoughtfully; it was common enough for wolves to want to run before they settled down. "Alright, you have my permission. Once you're in Virginia, make sure you contact Hunter and let him know you're just roaming," Randy instructed, looking serious. "Hunter's a good Alpha, but he tends to attack first and ask questions after the fact."

They both nodded before saying goodbye and Changing. They loped off towards the woods, but Randy had a feeling that this was going to be more trouble then it seemed.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N** Here's another chapter, peeps. I know my posting's been sporadic and I'm sorry about that; my internet issues are a fucken pain in the ass, and I wanna thank everyone whose still reading this for sticking with me. We're heading for the last lap now and looking back, I've basicly had good time writing this and I hope everyone's been having fun reading it as well. Special thanks to candy_belle who's been babbling with me on twitter while I'm in limbo, and just generally helping me keep my sanity, lol. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter and I'll try to have the next one up as soon as I can.

Max slouched over his drink, watching halfheartedly as his brother hit on the waitresses.

He was still fuming over what happened early that month. Getting beat up by that _fang_ irked him; he shouldn't even be in the pack. As far as Max was concerned Sabin and Shelley should never have been admitted in to the pack, and the fact that his Alpha was mated to some _vampire_ offended him more then he could put into words.

"Come on, bro, smile a little," Jeremy said, dropping into the seat across from him. "We're hanging out, away from all the pack bullshit, there's some hot tail here and we're on our own. Forget all that fucken nonsense and enjoy yourself."

"It's not natural, Jer!" Max said loudly, his eyes glowing before he took a deep breath and calmed himself down. "Vampires and werewolves can barely tolerate each other," he went on, lowering his voice so none of the humans would hear them. "It's bad enough that our Alpha is half human, but now he's mated to _that_." Max spit the last word out, his face screwed up in disgust.

"I don't know what your problem is," Jeremy said offhandedly, draining his beer and tossing it into the garbage can by the wall without looking. He raised his hand and waved the waitress over for another one.

Despite the fact that he was on his tenth or eleventh beer, he wasn't even close to being buzzed. He would have to drink five times his own weight before he would start to feel it -and it would have to be within the space of an hour or so; his metabolism was too fast for it to be any other way.

"Who gives a fuck if Randy's mated to some newborn? Sometimes I think you have the hots for him yourself." Jeremy teased, snickering at the look on his brother's face.

"Let him fuck the fang, Max. He'll fuck around and piss someone off, and then he'll be gone. End of story." Jeremy finished, flashing a charming smile at the waitress when she handed him the bottle of beer. He watched her leave, making a mental note to see if she was interested in rolling around later on.

"I don't trust it," Max said stubbornly, shaking his head. "They just showed up out of no where; we don't even know where they're from or who their maker is. How do we know they didn't plan it? I mean, they just showed up when Randy and Ted were by themselves? And by the caves? That's a little too much of a coincidence for me to swallow."

"Did you just say you had two newborns in your territory? Well now, that's very interesting indeed."

The brothers looked over as a new voice entered the conversation. Almost simultaneous inhales ended in snarls as they realized why the stranger had been able to sneak up on them.

He sat next to them, his dark eyes going black at the hostility he could feel rolling off the two young wolves.

"Now, is that any way to treat a potential mate?" Wade asked, his fangs showing briefly as he flashed a smile. "Or friend, as you Yanks say.

"It just so happens that I think we could be of some use to each other."

A few days later, Dan was running the perimeter by the western border when Josh "called" for him.

_**Dan, I think there's trouble, **_Josh told him, his voice hesitant. **_The Bucks are headed for us, and they're running like there's no tomorrow. I can't see anyone following them, though. I know it's not much to go on, but I've got a bad feeling about it._**

_**I'll be right there, **_Dan said, turning and heading for the younger wolf, his black ears pinned to his head. **_Don't let them go past; if they give you a problem, tell them I said to keep them there. They don't outrank me._**

Dan kicked up some more speed as he went towards him. If Josh couldn't see anyone, there wasn't anyone there to see. Josh's eyesight was better then his; hell, it was probably better then Randy's. And he didn't trust either one of the Bucks -especially Max.

He got there in time to see the two tan wolves trying to force their way past Josh. When Max snarled and lunged after Josh's throat, Dan felt his temper snap. Even though he knew Josh could take care of himself, and was -he dodged Max's attack and latched onto the older wolf's shoulder, trying to throw him off balance.

It looked like it would have worked, too, if Jeremy hadn't jumped on Josh from behind.

Dan growled and charged into the fight, ripping Jeremy off of Josh and sending him skidding across the grass. Snarling, he advanced on him, raising his hackles which made him look almost twice his size.

Jeremy shrunk down into the grass, rolling onto his back and throwing his head so his neck was showing. Dan growled again, the rage he felt completely at odds with the situation.

_**What the fuck is going on?**_ Dan demanded once he made sure Josh had Max under control. He sunk his teeth into Jeremy's throat until he could taste the other wolf's blood. **_And don't fucken lie to me._**

_**I give; I submit, **_Jeremy said, his voice weakening.

Dan forced himself to let go. Taking a deep breath, he Changed and then strode over to where Josh had Max pinned.

He put his hand on Josh's head and scratching his ears, turned his attention to Max.

"What the fuck is going on?" Dan repeated as Josh rubbed his head against Dan's side and then moved away so he could Change. Dan fisted his hand as the urge to pet him continued.

_**I don't have to tell you anything, **_Max said, the anger in his voice obvious. But there was something underneath it that sounded like fear to Dan. _**You're not my fucken Alpha.**_

"Thank god for that," Dan muttered before continuing. "No, I'm not but I do have strict orders from Ted to bring anything suspicious to either him or one of the Three. Or if I wanted to, Sabin or Shelley."

_There we go,_ Dan thought as Max snarled at the mention of the vampires. _He's never liked them but something else is going on here._

He glanced over at Josh, who was standing over Jeremy and then looked back down at Max before he made up his mind.

"Change back," Dan ordered . "We're going to go see Sabin and Shelley and whoever the hell else I can find."

Max stared at him, his lip curling in disdain. _**I don't have -**_

"No, you don't," Dan interrupted coldly. "But if you don't, I'll beat you into submission and then drag your ass in front of them. Pick one."

Max growled but Changed back, his dislike for Dan written all over his face.

"Hear that," Josh told Jeremy cheerfully. "We're gonna go see some friends. Get your ass into gear and Change."

It was obvious that neither one of the brothers wanted to listen to Dan, but they didn't have any choice.

Randy looked around at the loose circle of people surrounding him; Ted was talking to John and Sabin, gesturing wildly about something one of the pups had gotten into. "And then he looks at me, barks and fell into the river -"

Shelley was bickering with Mike - "I'm telling you, Mikey, there's no way in hell you can hold you're breath longer then me -I don't need to breathe, remember?" "And I'm telling you, _'Lexy_, I could do it now if I wanted to."- and sprawled on his side, his feet on Sabin's lap while Mike was rubbing his hand up and down Alex's back.

Alex was talking to Jay and Adam, making Jay snicker and Adam roll his eyes. Alex was leaning into Mike's hand, a contented smile on his face and Jay was leaning against Adam, his hand absently tracing patterns on Adam's thigh. Adam was leaning back on his hands, smiling at his mate.

Randy looked past them, to where his own mate was sitting with Evan and Cody. None of them were interested in this meeting; it would be all strategy and fighting. He didn't know if it was because they were all submissive or it was just their personalities -although he strongly suspected it was the former- but the three of them were perfectly happy just hanging out within eyesight.

"Alright," Randy said, his voice quiet but it was enough to get everyone's attention.

There was a general rustling and then everyone was looking at him expectantly.

"Before we get into why I wanted to have the meeting now, instead of on the fifteenth like usual, is there anything anyone wants to bring up?"

"I think you should give Dan more training," Chris spoke up, his voice easy. "I was trailing him when he was running perimeters with Josh; he noticed me almost right away. They were double teaming me pretty well -"

"Just the way he likes it." Mike snickered, grunting when Shelley elbowed him.

"If I was younger, I could've been in trouble," Chris said, grinning at Alex and running his hand down his back in appreciation.

"Josh listened to Dan?" Randy asked, flipping through his memory until he could match faces with the names.

"Without a doubt," Chris said, smiling a little. "He might not be alphic, but Dan'll be a good leader some day. A little more training and experience and he'd be an excellent tactician -and a good fighter; you never know when you'll need either one."

Randy nodded thoughtfully. "Have him spar with you, when you have time; once or twice a week," he told Ted.

Regardless of how easy going he was most of the time, Ted was the best fighter in the pack -except for Randy. And the most effective way to teach someone to fight, was to have them get their ass kicked until they learned how to fight back.

"I can do that," Ted agreed cheerfully. He rolled his shoulders and glanced over at Cody to make sure he was still alright. "Ya might want to drop in once in a while and have a go yourself."

"I will; at least once a month. I think you and Shelley should keep dropping in on him while he's running perimeter," Randy went on, trying to come up with a working plan. Developing Dan's fighting skills wouldn't be a problem, but his thinking skills were another issue.

"See if you can catch him by surprise and maybe I'll see if I can come up with anything else. Maybe something like hide and seek; something that can get him to use his brain as well as his muscle."

_**He looks better, **_Alex told Chris, watching as Randy started talking about the pups. **_More chilled or something. Happier, even. Did I look like that sappy after we were mated?_**

_**I have no idea, **_Chris answered, smirking. **_I was too busy fucking your brains out to pay attention to anything else._**

"The reason I wanted the meeting now is that Matt told me something when he came up," Randy said, but before he could go on, he saw Ted frown and tilt his head.

"Someone's coming up to us," Ted murmured. "Four of them. Dan for sure and maybe -Josh? Don't recognize the other two, though."

Almost two minutes later, they could see Dan and Josh headed towards them with Max and Jeremy in front of them. As they got closer and Randy saw the healing marks on Jeremy's throat, he raised his eyebrow.

He knew that they were going to be trouble, he just hadn't expected it to happen this fast.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N; **So, here we go another chapter. Thanks to everyone who's still reading this, I hope you're still liking it. Enjoy, peeps.

Once they were even with Randy and the others, Max and Jeremy stopped, grudgingly greeting Randy and completely ignoring everyone else.

"That's not very nice," Ted murmured, semi amused at the insult.

"It's definitely not," Mike agreed, a low growl in his voice. He exchanged a look with Shelley and they both looked at the brothers with identical smirks and disdain written on their faces.

Shelley's eyes were black and Mike's were brown and glowing, and Shelley's fangs were out, but it was clear to anyone who was looking that they were both pissed and ready to do something about it.

Randy noticed but didn't say anything to them; he knew they weren't going to start anything until after they found out what was going on. Besides, even though it should have been Sabin giving the dirty looks, Max and Jeremy had insulted them -and everyone else. A beating was the least of their problems once they were done talking.

"You know, I get the feeling that he didn't get the message the first time you beat it into him," Chris said offhandedly, his own fangs down and his eyes black, reacting to the anger he could feel from his mate.

He was practically daring Max to say or do something, and when Max stepped forward and snarled, he stepped right into Chris's trap.

"Now, that's _really_ not nice," Chris commented, squeezing the hand he had around Max's throat tighter. "You might want to rethink that before you end up castrated." And the look on his face told Max he meant every word of it.

"Alpha," Max managed to choke out, his face red. "Please."

As much as he didn't want to, Randy put a stop to it.

"Chris."

Only one word but it was enough to make Chris drop him and sit back down. But he kept his eyes on Max and his fangs didn't retract.

"Max," Randy went on, his voice cold. "Showing such blanket disrespect for someone who ranks higher then you is a big mistake; one even a pup knows better then to make. If you do it again, I'm not going to stop him from teaching you a lesson that you won't forget. Understand?"

Max nodded, scurrying back until he was by his brother. He was sullen and Randy had the distinct feeling that he resented the fact that he had to go to him for help.

"What's going on?" Randy asked, looking past the brothers to Dan and Josh. He made sure his voice was even and maybe a little curious; the last thing he wanted was for them to think they were in trouble.

"We were running the western border," Dan explained, taking the lead once him and Josh had greeted their Alpha and everyone else.

Randy noticed the way he stood slightly in front of Josh and the confident way he spoke to him.

_**You're right, **_Randy told Chris. **_He's definitely a dominant, and a good one, too, judging from the way he's trying to protect Josh in case I lose my temper. Once he grows into it some more..._**

_**Of course I was, C**_hris told him smugly. **_And I've got my own theory on him and Josh._**

"Josh told me that he saw these two running for the border," Dan sneered, looking at Max and Jeremy. "Running like someone was trying to kill them, but that no one was following them."

"I didn't see anyone after them," Josh confirmed when Randy looked at him. "It's all flat and clear by that side and I've got pretty good eyes."

"Better then mine are," Dan murmured, sharing a quick smile with the younger wolf.

"He said he had a funny feeling about it, so I told him to stop them until I got there. Even though they technically didn't do anything wrong it seemed suspicious to me, especially if it was setting alarms off for Josh, too."

"It was a good plan," Adam assured him when he paused. "You should listen to your instincts; if something feels wrong it usually is. You're ranked now, too -you have to learn to deal with things and then bring them to one of us if it feels like we need to know."

"That's what I thought," Dan said, relieved. "So, Josh told them I said to stay there and they fought him on it."

"Did they?" Ted asked, raising an eyebrow.

Disobeying an order from someone who outranked you was worse then not greeting your superiors. The list of beatings the brothers might be receiving was slowly getting longer and longer; if they weren't careful they were going to be in some major pain.

And judging by the looks on their faces, and the desperation rolling off of them in waves, they knew it.

"Max went after Josh, and while Josh was busy with him, Jeremy jumped him from behind," Dan went on, a growl in his voice.

"He interfered in a fair fight?" Jay asked, disbelief and disgust both very evident in his voice.

While it wasn't unheard of for two or more wolves to attack a stranger in their territory -all strangers were dangerous, and were treated as enemies until proven otherwise; if they survived that long.

Amongst the pack, if the wolves were close in dominance, it was against their laws to interfere. One of the things that held the pack together -any pack- was the hierarchy among them. If everyone interfered, no one would be sure who ranked who and the fighting would be catastrophic.

The only exception to that was for mated pairs, and even then unless they were submissive, most of the dominants let their mates handle themselves.

To break that basic law was unheard of. And Randy knew that the chances of Max and Jeremy walking out of here, at all, were slowly dwindling.

"That explains Jeremy's neck," John mused, nodding toward the healing bruises on his neck. "I'm gonna go out on a limb and say you got Jeremy off of Josh."

"Yeah, I may have over reacted," Dan said, a little sheepishly. "But once I got them separated, and made sure Jeremy wasn't going to jump in again, I ordered Max to tell me what the hell was going on. When he wouldn't, I remembered that Ted told me to come to one of them if I needed help with anything.

"So, I told them to Change back, and that we were going to see Chris and Shelley." Dan finished.

"How'd you get them to Change?" Alex asked curiously, eying the other wolves with distaste.

"I told them I'd beat the hell out of them and drag them up here if I had to." Dan answered, smirking.

"Why bring them to us instead Ted or one of the Three?" Shelley wanted to know, shifting a little closer to Chris so their sides were touching.

"They're afraid of you," Dan answered simply. "I figured it'd be the easiest way to get them to talk."

"We're not afraid of _them_!" Max hissed, snarling.

"Shut up," Josh told him calmly, kicking him in the back. When Max turned and glared, Josh just stared at him until he turned back around, looking at the ground sullenly.

"Alright," Randy said quietly, his voice authoritative. "I want to know what the hell is going on. And don't even _think_ about lying to me."

"Thank god you guys are here," Cody said, dramatically throwing himself to the ground and then rolling over onto his side so he was facing the two newborns. "I used to be so fucken bored at these things."

"Really?" Justin asked, watching Cody's antics with amusement. "Why's that?"

"Because it's always about the same thing," Cody answered. "How to attack someone, where to attack them, the borders, blah, blah, blah.

"Does it look like I care about any of that crap? As long as Teddy's there to protect me, I could fucken care less who guards what, and who's moving up in the ranks."

"What if someone decides to go after Ted?" Evan wondered, smiling a little. Justin grinned; being mated was agreeing with his friend. He hadn't seen his friend this happy in almost a year.

"Yeah, right," Cody snorted, completely confident in his mate's abilities. "First they'd have to beat the Three _and_ Sabin before they could challenge Teddy -and I don't have to tell you the likelihood of _that_ happening.

"And even if they managed that, there's no way they could beat Teddy. I'm more likely to turn into a cat, then that happening.

"And, honestly, do you guys care about any of that?" Cody demanded, sitting up and looking expectantly at his companions.

The newborns looked at each other, shrugged and said, "No." "Not really." The three of them burst into laughter.

"Hmmm, now that might be interesting," Cody commented, looking over to where the dominants were.

"Who's that?" Evan asked, looking over with him.

"Well, the two in front are Max and Jeremy Buck," Cody informed them, wrinkling his nose slightly. "You remember them; they were the ones who spoke out against you joining the pack."

"Oh, yeah," Justin answered, remember something else. "What're they doing here? They told Randy that they wanted to go to Virginia for a while."

"They must have wanted to go roaming," Cody mused. "The other two are Dan and Josh. They're younger then we are; Dan's twenty and Josh is nineteen. But they're ranked pretty high. Teddy has Dan running the border by himself already, and let him choose who he wanted to work with him."

"That's a big deal." Evan guessed as they eagerly watched Chris grab Max by the throat and lift him up.

"Oh, definitely. Maybe he'll hit – No, Randy made him put him down," Cody said in disappointment. He smiled at the surprise on his pack-mates faces. "I'm not really fond of the Bucks; they're obnoxious and annoying and they're forever picking on anyone who's ranked below them. I'd love to see them get smacked around, again.

"But, anyway, yeah, it's a huge deal. Especially when you consider that wolves aren't considered adults until they're eighteen or nineteen. Well, unless they're mated, of course. That's, like, an instant grown up card.

"Added to that, the borders can get dangerous. Not the western one as much as the northern one -which is where Matt and Jeff patrol- since we're friendly with the Alpha on that side; but even with that, things slip through. So, whoever Teddy puts in charge has to be able to handle themselves. And patrols are always in twos; so Teddy letting him pick who he runs with, it says not only that Teddy trusts him to handle himself but that he trusts his judgment."

"You know, for someone who doesn't care very much, you certainly know a lot about it." Justin commented, raising an eyebrow.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Cody told him. "I don't want to know any of that crap; I was forced against my will to learn it."

"Right," Evan said slowly. "And I'm the Easter Bunny."

"Bunny, huh? That's my favorite." Cody smirked right before he pounced on Evan playfully.

With a laughing shriek, Evan tried to roll through on it so he could reverse it, but Cody held strong. Justin grinned and jumped on Cody, joining the fray.

At the excited laugh, John glanced over at his mate and had to grin at the sight of all three of them rolling around.

Calming down a little, they paused at the sound of Randy telling the Bucks to explain what was going on.

"Those two wouldn't know the truth if it hit them." Justin said, rolling his eyes. He turned to say something to Cody but was met with the sight of Cody sitting there, his gaze empty and his body rocking back and forth.

"Cody?" Justin said, his voice worried.

Almost instantly, Ted was at their side, gently moving Justin away from his mate.

"I'm right here, Baby Boy," Ted said soothingly, kneeling next to him and rubbing his hand down his mate's back. "It's alright. What do ya see?"

"Blood. The pack betrayed. More blood. The pack stands strong." The words were clipped, the tone emotionless.

"Don't worry; Cody's fine," John reassured Evan, putting a hand on the small of his back. "He's just having a vision. He'll be back to normal soon." Evan leaned into the touch but his face stayed worried.

Justin looked at Randy. "He's really OK," Randy murmured, shifting so he was brushing against his mate even as he kept his eyes on Cody. "In a few minutes he'll be done."

"Shit," Chris cursed when he caught the look of pure terror on the Bucks' face. "I think I just found out what they're so scared of. Randy," Chris called out, inclining his head towards the brothers when his Alpha looked at him.

Randy narrowed his eyes but before he could say anything, Cody was talking again.

"They will be here. Soon. Pain and anger. Blood will be shed. Us and them. The pack will win."

Cody shuddered, his breath catching before he opened his eyes. "Teddy."

"I'm here, Baby Boy," Ted assured him, he exchanged a look with Randy before looking back into his mate's eyes. "Do you remember what you saw?"

"There were two guys," Cody said slowly, trying to remember everything he had seen. "They were taller then you, maybe Randy's height.

"I was afraid of them; but they reminded me of Chris and Shelley a little bit. I mean, they've never scared me, but these two had the same sense of..." Cody paused, at a loss for words.

"Being, maybe?" Alex suggested, exchanging a long look with Chris. "Like how a wolf feels like a wolf, even if he's from a different pack and you don't know him?"

"Yes," Cody agreed excitedly, sitting up and looking at them. "It was like that.

"They were tall," he repeated, trying to concentrating on the small details. "One of them had dark hair and...I think dark eyes; he was really pale, too. The other one I didn't see to well.

"He was shorter then the other guy, but he had more muscle. And I got the feeling they were looking for something, they were very urgent -wherever they were headed."

"Oh, I think we can guess where they're headed," Randy said grimly, standing up and turning toward Justin.

"Wade. But how -" Justin stuttered, looking terrified. Evan whimpered and turned his head into John's neck.

Randy rubbed Justin's back before he turned toward Max and Jeremy, his eyes a glowing green.

"Maybe now you'd like to explain what the fuck is going on." Randy snarled, his power flaring out.

He advanced on the Bucks, his power growing with every step he took. By the time he was actually in front of them, they were both cowering on the ground, whimpers coming from their throats.

"Don't," Randy said as Ted and the others went to stand next to him. "I'm going to do this alone."

The look he threw Ted had the other man nodding and dropping to his knees. Everyone else followed suit, dropping down and showing their necks.

"What. Did. You. Do." Randy demanded, every word accompanied by a slap of power that would have hurt anyone.

Cody whined, low in his throat, and wrapped himself around Ted's legs, needing the anchor of his mate. Evan was wrapped around John, but he kept one of his arms free to wrap around Justin's shoulders and pull him closer to him and John.

Adam pulled Jay closer to him when he could feel him start to falter, his arm around Jay's waist. Mike kept his hand on his mate's back, trying to keep him from falling over. Josh was completely wrapped around Josh, his head tucked against Dan's chest.

The vampires weren't unaffected, either; Chris kept a death grip on Alex's hand, making sure to keep in touch with him the whole time Randy was putting on his power show.

Randy kicked Jeremy to the side before he picked up Max, his claws slicing out and cutting his throat.

"What did you do?" Randy roared, his hand going tighter around Max's throat.

"I didn't mean to," Max whimpered, trying to breathe. "He was -"

"I don't want to hear your fucken excuses," Randy snarled.

He moved Max until he was even with his eyes. "You betrayed a pack-mate, willingly, for nothing. Out of jealousy or disgust, it doesn't matter.

"You've endangered all of the pack, not just Justin and Evan. Do you think if they managed to get to Justin and Evan that it would stop with them? No, they will attack the whole pack, including the pups!

"For what you've done, what you've intentionally done, I hereby cut the pack's ties to you and your ties to the pack."

What happened exactly, Justin couldn't tell; all he knew was that there was silence and then a low, mournful howling came from the brothers. It raised the hairs on the back of his neck, and was the saddest thing he'd ever heard in his life.

Looking at the wolves around him, he saw the same mixture of pity and fear on their faces -especially Adam and Jay's.

_'To be without a pack is the worst thing in the world for most wolves.'_

Justin knew Adam had said that to Evan once when they were talking about matings; Evan had told him the next time they saw each other after that. Dimly, Justin began to understand what it meant for them to be cast out of the pack.

"You have twenty four hours to get out of _our_ territory. Or you you will not leave breathing."

With those last words he turned back to Justin and everyone else, determined to get past this without losing any other members of his pack.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N:** So, the Guns kinda took control of this chapter. Greedy fuckers, aren't they? I had a little surprised for this chapter but since some people *glares at Guns* wouldn't let me, it'll hafta wait until the next chapter. But I will say this: besides the bad vamps, we're gonna see a new character or two before the end of the story.

Randy sat down in the clearing again, watching dispassionately while the Bucks crawled towards the woods, agony and misery radiating from every inch of their bodies.

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to relax enough that the others wouldn't be afraid to come back over.

"Justin." It was said quietly, without any power or expectation behind it. Randy just let his affection and worry for his mate filter through.

Justin hugged Evan one last time before he went over to Randy and crawled into his lap. Randy sighed; he could he feel Justin trembling, the fear obvious to him and everyone else.

"Guys, come over here," Randy said, his voice still quiet and even.

He was trying to keep all the fear and rage he felt buried; nothing was going to get accomplished if threw a fit or lost his temper.

They slowly sat back down in front of him, Ted and John both with their mates in their laps. Evan was trembling worse then Justin was, his face buried in John's neck. Cody looked a little more composed; he was sitting on Ted's lap but he wasn't hunched over or cowering. Ted was rubbing a hand up and down his back, anchoring him after his vision.

The cheerful group from earlier were gone and now, they were all in varying states of rage. The idea of pack betraying one another was alien to them and they were shocked by it. On top of that, there was a threat to the pack and their mates. It was enough to send even the most well behaved wolf over the edge.

"Maybe it won't happen," Cody said suddenly, turning and facing Randy, a pleading look on his face. "I could be wrong. Maybe they won't even come here. Or -or -"

"Baby Boy, it's not your fault," Ted said firmly before Randy could even open his mouth. "You're not the one who made this happen; Max and Jeremy did. If it wasn't for ya, we wouldn't even know to be ready for a fight."

"He's right, Cody," Randy said, tightening his arms around Justin. "Never blame yourself for something you didn't do and have no control over."

Cody nodded, tucking his head under Ted's chin and taking a deep breath.

"Sabin, Shelley," Randy said, still not raising his voice. "What would you do?"

"It depends on what they want," Alex answered, his voice bleak. His eyes were unfocused, glazed over and there was a look of such deep regret there that it made Justin's breath catch.

Chris moved closer to him, placing his hand on the back of Alex's neck.

_**You're not that person any more, **_Chris told his mate firmly, tightening his grip on Alex's neck. _**You'll never be that person again.**_

_**You're always so sure, **_Alex said, his voice worried. **_But what -_**

_**Listen to me, 'Lex, I know you won't because I know the real you, **_Chris said fiercely, moving until he was nose to nose with Alex.

_**If you were still the same person you were back then, would you be feeling all this remorse now? Would you even care about anyone? **_

_**No, **_Chris went on without waiting for an answer. **_You would never have stopped; you would still be wading in blood if you were really the monster you think you are._**

_**You're not a monster; you are mine. And I'll never believe that about you. Understand?**_

Alex closed his eyes briefly and nodded before he turned back to Randy.

"It depends," he repeated, his voice even. "If we're talking a snatch and run, they'll want to be as quick and quiet as possible," Alex went on thoughtfully.

"I'd do it during the day," Chris said, frowning slightly as he rubbed the side of Alex's neck with his thumb.

"We'll have to assume they know we're here, so they know that we'd be on the look out for them as well," Alex continued, exchanging a look with Chris. "I'd say, probably early afternoon."

"Most vampires are at their weakest then," Chris finished. "It wouldn't be expected for them to run in."

"You guys are always fine," Dan said suddenly, speaking from where he was sitting by Josh. "I've never seen you act tired or anything when it was light out."

"Observant little puppy, aren't you?" Alex asked, smiling to let Dan know he was teasing him.

"Some of it is just how old we are," Chris answered, smirking a little. "Being out in the sun takes practice; the more often you do it, the better you are. It gets easier every time, but a lot of vampires don't even bother. Too much work for too little effort as far as they're concerned."

"Plus, we're always out in the sun with you guys," Alex added, leaning slightly into Chris's hand when he moved it to his lower back. "There's no way we would've been able to keep up with you guys if we had been hiding out in the house all day."

"What if they don't want a quick snatch and grab?" Adam asked, his hand curled around Jay's side possessively.

Alex sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Well, if they just want blood, I'd say sometime after the moon rises. We're strongest then, so it would be better power wise.

"They'd probably attack whoever they came across first and, assuming they got past the first one, work their way in."

"Why would they do that?" Evan demanded, sitting up and looking at him. "How could they?"

"Most vampires are just built aggressive," Alex answered casually, but Chris could feel his reluctance to answer and anger at himself. "And it can be hard to control the blood lust at first. A lot of it depends on your Maker, too; and, of course, who you are.

"Getting Turned doesn't change who you are, it just concentrates it, makes your flaws more visible to everyone.

"And, unfortunately, almost anything can become a habit if you do it for long enough. After a while, it becomes not only what you do, but who you are.

"Before you know it, you're doing things that would make almost anyone insane and it's just another day at work for you."

Chris rubbed his hand down Alex's back; he wanted to pull Alex into his arms and show him that he wasn't that person any more, but he knew the last thing Alex would want was for anyone to realize how upset and vulnerable he was right now.

Both Evan and Justin were staring at Alex like they didn't know who he was; everyone else was taking it stride, though. Alex had insisted on telling Randy everything before he decided if he wanted them to join the pack. Randy, in turn, had told Ted and the Three.

"You're a monster," Evan said, his voice horrified. "Just like them."

Alex's face was carefully blank but the wave of self loathing and anger and despair that Chris felt made it clear how upset he was.

Even as Randy said, "Evan,", Chris was on his feet, his power flaring.

"Apologize," Chris said, his voice deceptively calm. The look on his face made Evan whimper and hide his face against John's chest.

"Now," he told the newborn, his power slapping at Evan and making him wince.

Instantly, John was on his feet; Evan shoved behind him as he went face to face Chris.

"Back off," John growled as his eyes started glowing. "You go too far."

"I don't think so," Chris told him, his eyes black. "He has no idea what he's talking about; he's running his mouth without checking to make sure he has all his facts straight."

"I know exactly what I'm talking about," Evan said, his voice defiant. "I would never do anything like that to another living thing."

"Oh, obviously, you know everything," Chris sneered, his voice like ice as his power flared again, making everyone except Randy and Ted flinch.

"How long were you with your Maker for? Six months. Try living with him for fifty years.

"Fifty years of being taught, and told, over and over again that you were a killer, that that was all you were good for, that you liked it. Fifty years of being tortured and tormented for the hell of it; on the whim of your Maker or anyone else who was stronger then you.

"When you can comprehend that kind of pain, of survival, then you can open your mouth.

"How fucken dare you sit there and talk about something you know nothing about. Especially when the person you're condemning has done everything in his power to make sure you never have to go through the same things he did.

"When he's willing to sacrifice his fucken life for you," Chris spit out, advancing towards John and Evan, making John back up a step.

"Chris," Randy said, his voice weary. "Your word that you won't harm Evan."

"I swear to you, on my mate and my pack, that I won't harm Evan," Chris said immediately, his voice still humming with power.

"Step down, John," Randy told him. "He was out of line and you know it; Chris gave his word and I trust him to keep it."

John hesitated, but stepped to the side, keeping his hand on Evan's shoulder. Evan had been out of line and John knew he needed to apologize but that didn't make it any easier to watch.

"Apologize," Chris repeated, and Evan saw the light glancing off of his fangs. "Apologize to him now, and then stay the fuck away from him."

"I -I'm sorry, Shelley," Evan stammered.

Chris stared at him for another minute before going to sit down by Alex and Mike, who had moved closer to him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder while Chris had been talking.

"Well, if that's over with, I think we need to come up with a plan," Randy said, his tone as serious as the subject. "We need to figure it out and now."

Alex shifted closer to Chris, putting his hand on Chris's thigh. When Chris glanced at him, Alex smiled at him. Chris smiled back before leaning in for a quick kiss and then turning back to Randy.

They didn't have to say anything because they both knew the depth of love and loyalty they had for each other, and Alex would have done the same exact thing in Chris's place.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N:** Well, here's another chapter. Thanks for all the great reviews, and here's the new character I was telling you about. Hope everyone likes him. Enjoy, peeps, we're almost to the end of this one.

"Maybe we should just pull everyone back from the perimeter," Mike said, frowning a little as he rubbed Alex's knee.

"Cody's vision doesn't leave any guess work; they _are_ going to get through. Doesn't it make more sense to have as many people ready for the fight?"

Randy nodded; he was already slowly forming a plan. "It does; at least some of the borders, anyway.

"We can pull Dan and Josh; since that was were the Bucks came in, I'm going to assume that's where the fangs are going to come from. Besides, I wanted Dan to get more training, and we might as well make use of the situation we have.

"Dan, Josh, you'll work with Sabin and Shelley. You're going to be the only ones here without any fight experience, so _listen_ when someone tells you something. Sabin is in charge of you when me or Ted's not around; he was the one who first thought you should get more training. Don't make either one of us regret it."

Dan nodded fervently and Randy could tell by the hunger to prove himself that was written all over his face, that he had made the right choice.

"What about Matt and Jeff?" John asked quietly. He could feel how tense Evan was and he rubbed his back in an attempt to relax him a little.

Evan was watching Shelley out of the corner of his eye, afraid to lose sight of him now that he knew what Shelley was really like.

_**He's not like that any more, **_John said, his voice reassuring. **_I might not be as close to Shelley as Sabin is, or even Mike, but I don't think he ever was that kind of person deep inside._**

Evan shook his head stubbornly. _**You don't know that; it's probably just an act.**_

John dropped it; he didn't want Evan more upset then he already was but he needed a way to make Evan see how different Alex was now.

"I'll call them down, too," Randy answered, and there was a certain sadness in his eyes when he went on.

"I'm going to call Punk, too."

Ted looked at him sharply, his eyebrow raised while everyone else looked surprised.

"You think that's, uh, necessary?" Adam asked after a minute.

"I don't have a choice," Randy told him, his arms tightening around Justin, making him squirm a little.

"I need every fighter I can get and Punk is one of the best. He can keep up with any of us and he's pack."

"Who's Punk?" Justin asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

"Did we meet him the other day?" Evan wondered, taking his eyes off of Shelley finally.

"No, Punk goes his own way," Randy answered Evan first, a distant look in his eye. "He's pack, though, and my cousin."

They'd been close once, Randy thought sadly. It had been Bob, Randy's father, that started calling Phil 'Punk' when they were both only three or four. It had caught on; as far as Randy knew, no one had called Punk by his given name in years.

Punk had moved in with them for a couple years until he had been fifteen; after that he had moved in with Colt.

"Punk lived here until a couple years ago," Chris continued when Randy didn't say anything else. "He left after..." Chris trailed off, his hand automatically reaching out to touch Alex's thigh.

Alex understood why Chris needed to feel him right then and rubbed his hand down Chris's arm.

Justin and Evan looked around the clearing, slightly disturbed at the looks of sadness and pity on everyone's face, but what really caught their attention was the edge of fear that was underneath them.

"Punk and Colt were in Virginia, on pack business, when they got jumped," Alex went on, his voice bleak.

"By four other wolves. It didn't seem like a big deal; the other wolves were young and Punk's a fucken excellent fighter; Colt was a hell of a brawler in his own right, too. Punk and Colt figured they were just letting off some steam; especially since they were in the territory with Hunter's permission."

"They had silver knives on them," Randy growled, feeling the familiar ball of helpless rage in the pit of his stomach. The two and a half years had dulled it a little, but he could still feel it there; a reminder of a time when he had failed his pack -his _family_- when they had needed him the most.

Justin shifted a little, just enough so he could snake his arm around Randy's back and hug him tightly. Randy sighed and dropped a kiss on top of his head.

"By the time some of Hunter's pack got there, it was too late; they had run off and Punk was almost dead. And Colt was already gone." Alex told them, shuddering lightly, unable to do anything but picture Chris there were Colt had been.

"There was so much blood, they couldn't tell who got cut where," Chris put in, noticing everyone else in the clearing were gripping their mates just as hard as he was; he had the feeling Alex was going to have bruises on his thigh later on from where his hand had a death grip on him.

"Punk was latched onto Colt, curled around his back," Adam remembered, his arm still around Jay's waist and Jay was leaning his head on Adam's shoulder.

"They had to break his fingers before they could pry his hands off of him," Jay added softly. "Even unconscious, he refused to let go of Colt."

Justin's breath caught and he exchanged terrified looks with Evan before burying his head in Randy's chest.

"He was never the same after that," Cody murmured, his own guilt obvious. "He stayed here until we buried Colt and Hunter had found the wolves who had done it."

"What happened to them?" Evan asked, almost afraid of the answer. He could only imagine what could have been done to them and he had a feeling he was going to have nightmares about it.

"I don't know," Randy answered, but there was a vicious edge to his smile that said he could picture what it was and that he was very pleased with the image he had come up with. "Hunter kept two of them to make an example out of for his pack, and delivered the other two to Punk."

"I saw him after," Mike said, his voice low. "Me and Alex were hunting," he paused to look at his mate and when Alex nodded, he went on.

"He was covered in blood and I mean _covered_; even his hair was stained red. I don't think there was a single part of his body that wasn't. He looked like a horror movie come to life."

"After that, he rinsed off in the river and sat in front of Colt's grave for almost two days," Ted finished, his own hold on Cody turning his knuckles white. "Punk left after that, and he hasn't been back since."

"If he shows up," Chris started, his eyes on Justin, not even acknowledging the other newborn.

"He'll show up," Randy interrupted, his voice sure.

"Ya don't know that," Ted corrected him quietly. He shook his head at the look on Randy's face. "What could ya do to him to make him, Randy? Cut him off from the pack? Kill him? He's been trying to get killed for two and a half years and ya know it."

Randy's temper flared but as he looked at Ted, it died just as quickly as it had started. He knew Ted was right; ever since Colt's death, he'd hear stories from other packs about the antics Punk had been getting into, the fights and risks he'd been taking, all in an effort to make sure he didn't have to go on without Colt.

"If he shows up," Adam repeated, looking at both the newborns, noticing the looks Evan was throwing Shelley.

_**Chris is going to kick his ass for that, **_Jay said offhandedly. _**Or, rather, Chris is going to kick John's ass for it.**_

_**You don't sound too upset, Angel, **_Adam observed, smiling a little.

_**Evan was out of line; he has no right to judge someone when he hasn't been through the same things he has, **_Jay said simply. **_And even then I don't think he'd have the right._**

"Whatever you do, don't touch him. He hates it; some wolf in West Virginia put his hand on Punk's shoulder for something and he almost lost his arm."

"But why? I thought wolves liked being in contact with each other." Evan said, rubbing his cheek against John's chest and inhaling his scent.

"We do," Alex answered, shifting closer to Mike until their legs were pressed together. "The touch and feel of pack helps comfort us and makes us feel safe and happy; it reminds us that, no matter what happens, we're not alone."

"Punk doesn't _want_ that," Randy said, answering Justin's unspoken question. "He thinks he has to suffer every minute he's still alive without Colt."

"He blames himself," Chris said quietly, sliding his hand from Alex's thigh, up his back and resting it on the back of his neck. ""He couldn't protect the one thing he loved more then life itself. He loathes himself more and more everyday."

_**You might want to talk to Evan, **_Chris told Randy evenly. **_He doesn't like 'Lex now, that's his own deal, but he's starting to get on my nerves with all the dirty looks. _**

_**I'll talk to him, **_Randy said, his own voice borderline aggravated. **_We can't afford to have you guys at each others throats._**

"It's good to see some people have a conscious," Evan muttered.

An ominous growl came from Chris but Randy raised a hand before he could say or do anything.

"Alright, let's get some rest tonight; starting tomorrow, we run 24/7 border checks. One of us," Randy said, motioning to everyone in the clearing. "Is always going to be awake at all times. No one is to go off by themselves. Understand?"

Once everyone nodded, he continued. "I'll talk to Matt and Jeff tonight and I'll try Punk, too. We'll meet at Sabin and Shelley's at first light. Evan, John, stay a minute." Randy added when everyone was leaving.

"I'm gonna go say goodbye to everyone," Justin murmured, brushing a quick kiss over Randy's lips before he got up and went over where the wolves had changed and were rough housing with each other and his _onderwysers._

Randy watched as his mate paused to hug Evan and then ruffle his hair affectionately before continuing over to everyone else.

"Randy," Evan murmured, ducking his head respectfully. John searched Randy's face for a split second before he dropped his eyes.

"Evan," Randy murmured back, mentally sighing.

"I know why you want to talk to me," Evan told him, his voice respectful but there was no mistaking the animosity in his words. "But you can't make me trust him again."

"You're right; I can't. More to the point: I wouldn't even if I could," Randy said, smiling slightly at the look of surprise on Evan's face.

"You can, you know; if Shelley wanted to hurt you, he had more then enough opportunity to. The person he was then is not the person he is now, or even the person he really was, I believe.

"But that's neither here or there.

"What I wanted to talk to you about is a lot simpler then the question of trusting someone. You need to watch what you're saying and doing.

"You don't have to like Shelley, or trust him; hell, you don't even have to talk to him. But you need to stop insulting him.

"In the first place, you need to get the full story before you start making snap decisions about someone. Beyond even that, if you keep talking like you are to Shelley and making accusations about him, you're going to pay the price.

"More to the point, _John's _going to pay the price. Chris will only stand for so much before he challenges John about it, and then there's going to be a fight. And I don't need to tell you that that is the absolute last thing we need right now."

"But why would he blame John?" Evan questioned, his heart in his throat. Despite his reluctance to accept the mating at first, he didn't want John to pay for his mouth. "I mean, I'm not a little kid, I'm responsible for myself."

"To a certain point, yes, you are," Randy answered, shaking his head slightly in disappointment. He knew they had gone over this with Evan and Justin.

"But when it comes down to a fight, John's responsible for you. Our laws state that if you're submissive, you can't fight. At all, no matter what it's for. You're mate has to fight your battles for you.

"And with good reason. You saw the kind of damage dominants can do to each other; now imagine if it was you or Justin, or, hell, even Cody trying to fight. It would be a fucken massacre.

"Chris is pretty easy going about most things -but when it comes to his mate, he draws the line; which is how it should be. And believe me when I tell you, you've seen nothing close to what Chris is capable of when it comes to protecting his mate from any kind of threat -no matter if it's physical or emotional.

"Eventually, he's going to get pissed enough to challenge John and then one of them is going to get hurt, badly. I wouldn't be surprised if neither one of them were able to walk away from that fight.

"All I'm telling you is to watch your mouth. If it boils down to a fight, my hands are tied. John and Chris are close in dominance and our laws state that they have to settle it themselves.

"I don't want either of them hurt -in the first place, they're both of my pack and in the second, we're going to need every single fighter we can get our hands on.

"And I want you to think about this: you might not like or trust him right now, but Shelley's willing to lay his life on the line for you -so is Chris for that matter. I don't think it's too much to ask to be polite and show them a little respect."

Evan nodded, making sure to keep his eyes down. John threw his arm around Evan's shoulder and led the confused vampire away from their Alpha. He hoped Randy had gotten through to him about this.

Later on that night, Randy laid in bed curled around Justin with his eyes closed. Taking a deep breath, he called out to his cousin.

_**Punk? Are you there? I need your help.**_

For a minute, Randy thought he wasn't going to answer, but then he heard Punk; his voice almost the same as it always had been, but now there was a deep mourning to it that Randy would never be able to fully understand.

_**Cousin, **_Punk said formally, the words slightly mocking. **_What could I possibly do for you?_**

**A/N2: **If anyone's interested, you can read the scene that set off the idea of wolf!Punk here: 30 Times -Chicago Style. It's under 'Devastated'.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: **So, here we are. I hope everyone's till enjoying this as much as they were. Thanks to everyone who's taken the time to review/read this.

The lone wolf sat on the edge of his old pack's territory, his nose twitching as he caught Mike's scent on the wind. Even though Punk had sworn to himself years ago that he was never going to come back here, it felt good to be close to his old hunting ground. He felt closer to Colt here, too; it was one of the reasons he had taken to staying in the general area the last six months or so.

As the thought of Colt entered his mind -not that he was ever very far from Punk's thoughts- a low, needy whine left Punk's throat and he closed his eyes briefly before he trotted across the territory lines, immediately heading for the graveyard.

"Do I really need to stay behind?" Justin asked as they walked toward Sabin and Shelley's. His hand was buried in the fur at his mate's neck and Randy kept brushing against his legs as they were walking.

_**Yes; I need to talk to the rest of the pack, **_Randy told him, rubbing his head against Justin's side in a silent apology. **_I need to look in on the new pups, too._**

_**You'll be at Sabin's with Dan and Josh; I told John to drop Evan off, too. He needs to get over whatever's wrong with him, and soon.**_

_**You're not scared of Shelley now, are you? **_Randy asked Justin after a minute. He hadn't sensed any fear from him, but he was curious to hear what the newborn would say.

"No," Justin answered, shaking his head. "If Shelley wanted to hurt me, he would have."

_**Dan and Josh are going to practice their guarding skills on the two of you, **_Randy went on as they broke through the trees. **_Sabin and Shelley will keep an eye on them, but this is a chance for them to prove themselves._**

Justin nodded, resolved to help his best friend and to stay away from Wade.

Randy caught the brief shiver of fear that skated down his mate's back and he nuzzled his side to make him feel better.

_**He won't touch you, **_Randy promised fiercely. **_I swear it._**

Alex sat on the porch waiting for everyone else to show up. He was staring at the sky, but he didn't even notice the sunrise; he kept playing Evan's words over and over again in his head.

_You're a monster, just like they are. At least some people have a conscience. _

Did he have a conscience? Maybe now, but it hadn't always been like that. There had been a time -before Chris- when the only thing he had cared about was his Maker's wishes and doing whatever it took to make sure he got what he wanted. It was at times like these where he wondered if he had a conscience or if he just had Chris to tell him what was right or wrong.

Alex closed his eyes as another dead body flashed in his memory, another reason why he couldn't blame anyone for loathing him, another sin to lay at his feet -if he wanted to get religious about it.

Before he could get too depressed, he felt Chris settle behind him; his arms going around Alex's waist and resting his chin on Alex's shoulder as he surveyed the yard.

_**Everyone will be here soon, **_Chris said, kissing Alex's shoulder before moving back to his original position.

_**Are you going to be alright with Evan here?**_

_**I'll be fine, **_Alex assured his mate, smiling a little. **_You act like a wolf with her pup sometimes._**

_**Interesting, **_Chris said, the smirk very evident in his voice. He slid his hands until the tips of his fingers were just underneath the waist of Alex's jeans and moved his head back a few inches so he could see the fading bruise and bite mark that were on Alex's neck from earlier.

_**You weren't saying that before, **_Chris told him, dipping down and, very lightly, setting his teeth on the bruise. **_Of course, it was hard to hear anything over all the moaning and screaming._**

_**You're such a fucken dick, **_Alex told him as he moved his head to give Chris more access.

Chris growled at the motion but before he could take advantage of it, he saw Randy and Justin coming from one side, and Dan and Josh from the other.

_**You're sure you're OK with it? **_Chris asked one last time as he got to his feet and gave Alex a hand.

_**Yeah, **_Alex answered, and there was a taste of self loathing to the words that he couldn't help. **_I can't blame him for being afraid of me; maybe he should be. _**

_**Fuck him, **_Chris said, turning Alex so he was looking into his eyes. **_He's a fucken immature brat who has no idea what he's talking about. And if he cares about John at all, he'll watch his fucken mouth when I'm around. You're worth five hundred times what he is._**

_**You're a little biased, **_Alex pointed out, amused.

_**So what? **_Chris scoffed as he waved to his pack-mates and Alpha. **_It's still true._**

Alex couldn't help smiling as he trailed behind Chris to greet everyone. Maybe he couldn't get Evan to trust him again, but Chris still believed in him -and he always would. And that's what really mattered.

As they came into the yard, Dan hung back to let Sabin and Shelley greet Randy and Justin first. Josh automatically slowed down to match his pace to Dan's.

_**Did you know about Shelley? **_Josh asked suddenly, sounding curious.

Dan glanced at him but as far as he could tell, Josh didn't seem upset or angry.

_**Not specifics, no, **_Dan answered, brushing his shoulder with Josh's as they made their way over to the vampires.

_**But I'm not surprised. You don't get as old as Shelley is without killing some people.**_

There was an underlying respect to the words that Josh understood. Wolves were predators, after all, and all predators respected each others teeth and claws and the willingness to use them.

_**It's going to be interesting, **_Josh commented wryly, glancing at Dan.

_**Tell me about it, **_Dan agreed. **_Hopefully, Evan'll be smart enough to not act like he has a death wish._**

Josh could only agree as they went to go greet everyone.

"John's dropping off Evan," Randy reminded Sabin while Shelley and Justin were greeting Dan and Josh. "And I'm sure Ted will drop Cody, too."

Randy could see the dislike on Sabin's face but all he did was nod. "I'll be back in a couple hours; I just want to check in with the rest of the pack and look in on the new pups."

"Kelly had hers, then?" Chris asked, amusement chasing the distaste off his face for a minute. "How many this time?"

"Only two," Randy said, sharing a smile with him. Kelly's proclivities were well known; even within a race that was known for being very sexual, it raised eyebrows sometimes. But Randy usually let it go; as long as she wasn't causing trouble, he tended to let her go her own way.

"A boy and a girl," Randy continued, walking toward the yard. "Both healthy; we'll introduce them to the whole pack at the next full moon.

"I want to let a couple of the lower wolves know what's going on, too."

"No problem," Chris said, hesitating for a minute before asking, "Have you heard from Punk?"

Randy sighed, looking at the trees. "I got a hold of him last night, told him I needed his help, but you know Punk. He didn't even say he would try."

"It's gotta be hard for him, Randy," Chris said softly, his eyes focused on Alex. "Coming back here..."

"I know," Randy agreed, his own eyes focused on Justin as he laughed at something Dan told him. "It's the only reason I haven't ordered him back here."

Randy sighed again before nodding to Chris and walking into the yard. Chris watched him say goodbye to Justin before striding to the edge of the trees and Changing.

Once he was out of sight, everyone else headed for the porch; Dan and Josh looking at him expectantly.

"Go run a perimeter around the house," Chris decided, glancing up at the sun that was barely in the sky. "Then loop back around and come inside."

_**How big of a perimeter? **_Dan asked, poised to run. _**Is three and a half miles good?**_

"Yeah, that's just about perfect," Chris praised, scratching Dan's ears briefly.

Wagging his tail, he barked happily and licked Chris hand before dashing off, Josh right behind him. After a conferring for a second, Josh turned left and Dan went right.

Justin looked at Chris nervously before turning to Alex. "You're not mad at me or anything, are you?"

"No," Alex answered, exchanging a surprised look with Chris. "Why would I be?"

"Because of Evan," Justin said simply, shrugging his shoulders. "He's my best friend, after all."

At the mention of the other newborn Chris's eyes darkened but he didn't say anything to Justin, he just looked at his mate and raised an eyebrow.

_**Do you want to handle this or can I call him a fucken moron?**_

"He might be your best friend," Alex said, mentally snickering at Chris's words. "But last time I checked, that doesn't make his opinions yours. Hell, even if he was your mate, it still wouldn't make his opinions yours."

Justin nodded, his relief obvious. "Thank god," he muttered, smiling a little. "I was afraid I'd have Chris after my ass."

Chris laughed, rolling his eyes. "Technically, I'd be going after Randy, not you. Beating on you is against the rules," Chris told him, hooking an arm around his neck and putting him into a headlock.

"Come on, man, let me go," Justin laughed, halfheartedly trying to shove the older vampire away from him.

Chris released him, smirking a little. "See? Can't even handle a little rough housing; no wonder no one's allowed to beat on you."

"Well," Alex drawled, his smirk almost identical to his mate's. "I supposed Randy could beat on you, but that would really defeat the purpose."

"Threatening you with a good time isn't exactly a punishment, is it?" Chris finished, snickering at the embarrassed look on Justin's face.

They were still chuckling when Ted came by with Cody. The brown wolf stayed by the trees long enough to watch his mate reach the porch then he turned and headed back the way he came.

_**Sorry, I can't talk, **_Ted told Chris. **_I gotta go meet Randy; take care of Baby Boy for me._**

_**Wait, you mean, I'm not supposed to kill him and drink his blood? **_Chris asked sarcastically. **_I'm so confused right now._**

_**Ha ha, **_Ted said dryly. **_If I had the time, I'd bite ya 'cause that was the dumbest joke I've ever heard ya make._**

_**Come on, that was a good one, **_Chris protested and when Ted didn't answer him, he turned to Alex, who just shook his head and grinned.

"It was pretty bad, babe," Alex informed him, amused at he look of indignation that crossed his mate's face.

Justin and Cody were both snickering and Chris slapped both of them on the back of the head. He couldn't stop his lips from twitching, though, and it was with humor that he glared at both of them.

"That hurt," Cody pouted, rubbing the back of his head dramatically.

"Please, Codes, I'm not Ted," Chris reminded him, rolling his eyes and leaning against the the front window. He scanned the yard briefly before turning his attention back on Cody. "I'm not going to buy the pout and I'm not going to lose my mind when you pretend to be hurt."

"I have no idea what you're referring to," Cody said loftily, throwing his arm around Alex and smiling charmingly. "So, what's there to eat around here? I'm hungry."

"What does this look like, a fucken restaurant?" Alex asked, raising an eyebrow and elbowing him. "Can't you just go kill Bambi or something?"

"Who, me?" Cody asked innocently, fluttering his eyelashes at him. "I would never hurt anything like that."

At that the three of them broke into hysterics, Cody joining in after a couple seconds.

"What do you mean, I'm staying there?" Evan asked, stopping dead in his tracks. He knew he probably sounded like a petulant child, but he couldn't help himself.

John sighed and put his hand on his mate's shoulder. "Randy wants you to stay there; it's safer that way. And even if I didn't agree with him, you'd still have to do it."

Evan shook his head but didn't say anything else.

"Justin'll be there, too, Ev," John told him, pulling him into a hug and rubbing his face against Evan's hair. "And I'm sure Ted will bring over Cody, too."

"I noticed you didn't mention Jay or Alex." Evan pointed out but there was no heat in the words.

"You know why they won't be staying there," John said, moving away from him and lacing their fingers together and tugging him forward.

"Yeah, I know," Evan sighed and let his mate lead him to Sabin and Shelley's. "I'd just feel better if there was someone stronger there."

John didn't say anything, but he shook his head over his mate's stubbornness.

As Alex turned to say something to Justin, movement over by the trees caught his eye. When he realized it was John and Evan, he couldn't help the way his body tensed up.

It was obvious that the newborn didn't want to be here; his head was hanging down and his shoulders were hunched. His misery was plain enough to see.

Alex couldn't help the guilt he felt; and, on some level, he was comfortable with it. He deserved it, didn't he, for all the lives he had taken and for the countless others he had damaged beyond repair.

_**Stop it,**_ Chris ordered, his voice rough. He tracked John and Evan's progress into the yard with his eyes, frowning a little. H would follow orders -he had too much respect for Randy to do anything else- but his expression clearly said he wasn't happy about it.

_**I mean it, 'Lex. Fuck him; how long has he known you? Not nearly long enough to know the real you. Do you think Randy would leave Justin here if he believed what Evan thought of you? Or Ted? Or, hell, even John?**_

Alex shook his head, acknowledging the truth of his mate's words. No wolf would leave his mate with someone he believed was even remotely capable of hurting them.

"Hey, guys," John said quietly, his eyes weary. "I can't really stay and talk; I'm running late."

"That's what happens when you can't control yourself," Cody snickered.

"You have a smart mouth, brat," John told him, smiling a little. "Maybe I should fix it for you."

"Please, I'm fucken perfect and we all know it," Cody said, running his hands through his hair and smiling charmingly.

John laughed, shaking his head. "I've got to get going; it shouldn't be too long."

"No worries," Chris smirked, his voice easy. He wasn't pissed at John and they all knew it. "I think I can be trusted for that long."

John rolled his eyes and turned to his mate. He pulled him in for a quick kiss and whispered something in his ear before Changing and heading for the trees.

Evan stood there, refusing to go any closer and just stared at his feet. He had a feeling it was going to be a long day.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: **Hey, peeps. Enjoy the chapter. Thanks for reading and commenting and reviewing. I love you guys for it, for really.

Evan sat in the yard, watching Dan and Josh in amusement while they ate the breakfast that Justin and Cody had brought out. There was a ton of food on both plates; and in only a matter of minutes they had polished all of it off.

"Damn, is there any food left inside?" Evan asked, laughing.

"That's nothing; you should have seen this one pigging out," Justin informed him, elbowing Cody in the ribs.

"Fuck off," Cody told the newborn, shoving him playfully. "This awesome physique doesn't maintain itself."

"Of course it doesn't," Chris said dryly from behind them, smirking when the three of them jumped. "After all, you can't live on blow jobs alone."

Justin, Dan and Josh burst into laughter and after a couple seconds, Cody joined in. "That was a good one, Sabin," he admitted, chuckling.

Evan just bit his lip and looked down at the ground.

"Dan, Josh, you're on guard duty," Chris said, ignoring the newborn just as well as he was ignoring him. "Unless they're in the house, and you know for a fact that me or Alex is in there, don't let them out of your sight.

"We'll be here, but this is your chance, alright? Call if you need us or there's anything that seems off. Anything, understand?"

Dan nodded. "Should we still run a perimeter?"

"Yeah, every hour or so, switch off on it," Chris said approvingly. "I expect nothing but the best from you two."

He walked away from them and headed for the front porch where Alex was sitting.

"He still won't talk to you, either?" Alex asked quietly when Chris sprawled on the steps next to him.

"No, but he doesn't have to talk to me for me to do my job," Chris answered, shrugging. He looked around the yard, his eyes lingering on the line of trees that surrounded their yard.

"Don't you think you're being a little hard on him?" Alex asked, smiling fondly at his mate. "I mean, he is really young."

"So what? Being a newborn doesn't give him an excuse to be a jackass. If he was leery of trusting you, I would understand," Chris said, his lip pulled back from his teeth in derision.

"But he's accusing you of something he has no concept of. More, he's judging you without knowing all the facts. He's acting like he's never done anything wrong in his entire life, which is bullshit.

"Besides all of that, which is enough to piss me off anyway, he's got you doubting yourself over shit that happened decades before he was fucken born. You're so much more then that what you used to be, 'Lex. Hell, you're more then what you think you are _now_. And I'll be fucked if I'll let some whiny, idiotic fucken baby treat you like you're a monster."

_**It scares me, Chris, **_Alex told him, his voice worried. **_I don't want to be that person again. And, what if whatever happened to me when I met you suddenly switches off on me? I couldn't handle it if I turned into -_**

_**Don't, **_Chris growled, getting to his feet and standing over him before Alex could blink. **_You're nothing like that son of a bitch. _**

_**Even at your darkest, you were never as bad as him. Never. You never killed someone's kids because they pissed you off. You never would have done that if he asked you to. Would you?**_

_**No, **_Alex answered, his voice low. He had never been able to lie to Chris; from the first time he had laid eyes on him, Alex had never been able to do anything but tell him the truth. **_No, I've never sunk that low. But that doesn't make what I did do any less wrong. _**

_**Did I say it did? But you've spent the last fifty years making up for it, **_Chris told him, crouching down so he was eye level with his mate. **_You can't keep condemning yourself for the same things over and over again._**

Alex knew Chris was right, but he still didn't find it quite that easy to forgive himself. But he did try to clear his head and cheer up a little bit.

There was enough shit going on without adding his drama to the mix. After giving Chris a quick kiss and grinning at him, he gazed over his mate's shoulder into the yard. Alex only hoped Evan felt the same.

"Can I ask you something?" Evan said hesitatingly, glancing to the porch where he could see Chris and Alex as if they were standing right in front of him.

"Sure," Dan asked, his blue eyes scanning the trees before turning to the newborn. "You are pack now, after all; you can be as nosy as you want."

"Well, I," Evan hesitated again and he knew if he could still do it, his cheeks would be bright red. "I just wanted to ask you about...Alex."

"_Jesus Christus_," Justin muttered, rolling his eyes.

Cody exchanged a look with Josh, both of them exasperated.

"What about him?" Dan asked, his voice carefully bland. Josh eyed him worriedly; he knew how well Dan got along with Sabin and Shelley. More to the point, Dan was well aware of who had talked to Randy about his extra training and insulting Sabin's mate was tantamount to insulting Sabin himself, and Dan was not going to take that lightly.

And while Dan wouldn't break their laws and go after him, or even let it interfere with his job, the last thing Evan needed was someone else mad at him.

"Doesn't it bother you? I mean, he's basicly admitted to getting his rocks off by killing people." Evan said, his voice disgusted.

"Did I know the details of what he _used_ to be like? No, but I can't say that I'm surprised by it," Dan answered, his voice still bland but there was a thin thread of anger that even Justin picked up on.

"Alex is a predator; just as much as I am or Josh is or, hell, even as much as Cody is, for all that he's submissive. No offense, Codes," Dan added, smiling at the other wolf.

Cody waved it off; a lot of people assumed just because he was submissive it meant that he didn't understand the need to hunt or the thrill of it. No, he understood it just as well as any dominant; being submissive just meant he didn't get the ultra aggressive gene and he didn't like fights, power displays, etc. Hunting was something else entirely.

"Predators don't hate other predators for using their teeth and claws; the wolf in me respects that he can kill people because the wolf in me is just as capable of it as he is, more the wolf in me understands the need to completely dominate someone who is all around weaker then me physically.

"The human side of me would hate Shelley if that was truly how he got his rocks off -but he doesn't.

"Maybe you're being stubborn or maybe you just weren't paying attention, I don't know," Dan's voice shifted and there was a note of disdain in it and Evan blanched because he knew it was for him.

"But that was what he was like when he was first Turned, he hasn't killed anyone since they became part of the pack. That I know for a fact; Cody would have had a vision about it. And, yeah, he could've went outside our territory to do it, like Griffin did, but if he was truly a sadistic killer, eventually he would have attacked someone in our territory; he wouldn't have been able to help himself.

"I can't pretend to know what it feels like to be Turned or how tightly you're bound to your Maker, but from everything I've heard, it's almost like having an Alpha. And your Alpha can make you do anything he wants you to. Not all Alpha's are good dominants; to be an Alpha you just need to be stronger then everyone else around you.

"There are monsters every where, Evan, and not all of them have fur or fangs -and not all of them need to drink blood to survive. I can't tell you who to trust or who to be friends with, but I can give you some advice: judging someone for something that happened decades before you were born is both ridiculous and unhealthy -especially when you don't have the full story."

"Dan," Josh said suddenly, his eyes trained on the trees. "There's someone coming and I don't recognize them."

"Sabin, Shelley," Dan called out, rising to his feet and immediately putting himself in front of everyone else.

Chris and Alex were there fast enough that it was almost instantaneous. They went in front of Dan, Chris motioning Dan and Josh to fan out behind them and to the sides of Cody and the newborns.

Chris waited tensely, his eyes pitch black and his fangs gleaming as he pulled his lip back in a warning snarl. Alex was poised to attack, every muscle in his body tensed to defend his pack-mates against whatever threat would present itself.

Evan was wrapped around Justin, his own body tense as he tried to keep himself from running away. Justin leaned his head on Evan's, trying to keep his own reaction under control as Cody rubbed his hand up and down Justin's back.

Dan was on Evan's side and Josh on Cody's, both of their eyes glowing and their claws out.

A wolf trotted out of the trees, his black fur streaked with white and silver. He sat down and stared at them, his head tilted to the side as he studied the group in front of him.

"Holy fuck," Alex breathed out as he relaxed his fighting stance, slowly straightening up.

"He came," Chris added, both of them staring at the wolf in front of them like they were seeing a ghost.

_**Evan, are you hurt? **_John demanded, his voice tense.

_**No, **_Evan answered. _**No, I'm fine. But I have no idea what's going on.**_

Cody stared at him, his mouth hanging open in disbelief while Justin and Evan looked at each other in confusion.

_**Cody, what's wrong? **_Ted said sharply, a growl in his voice.

_**Nothing, Teddy, **_Cody told him quickly, not wanting Teddy to get worked up. **_I'm fine. But...Punk's here._**

Dan and Josh inhaled deeply, shock on their faces when they recognized the wolf's scent even if they didn't know him by sight.

_**Justin? **_Randy asked, picking up on his mate's fear through their bond. **_Did something happen? Are you OK?_**

_**I'm fine, **_Justin assured him, feeling out of the loop. **_There's just someone here I don't know._**

There was a shimmer and then they saw a man sitting there with black hair that just brushed the top of his ears and dark green eyes. He had full sleeves done and to Justin's eyes, it looked like they needed touching up.

He stared at them for a minute before smirking suddenly. "What, you assholes just gonna stand there and stare?"

"I might, if you were worth looking at," Chris said, recovering first and smiling at him. "Punk, that's Justin and Evan."

_**Randy, **_Chris said, still shocked. **_Punk's here._**

There was nothing but silence but Chris knew he had gotten the message.

Punk raised an eyebrow at Chris's tone when he said Evan's name, but otherwise ignored it. "You're the one mated to my cousin," he said, getting to his feet and stretching before he walked closer.

The words were friendly enough, but there was a deep sadness to them that suddenly reminded Justin that Punk had lost his mate.

"_Ja_," Justin answered, slightly confused for a minute. "But how did you know? I thought most _weervolven_ can't smell us."

"We can't, but his scent's all over you," Punk turned to look at Evan. "And Cena, huh? You guys've been busy while I was gone."

"Well, when you drop off the face of the fucken earth, it's hard to keep up with you," Alex told him, chuckling. "Next time, leave a damn forwarding address or something."

Punk eyed the other three werewolves, barely glancing at Dan and Josh before focusing on Cody.

"Cody."

Cody licked his lips and nodded at him. "Punk." He couldn't help the guilt that crept into his voice; if only his visions were stronger, _better_, then he could have saved two lives that day and Colt would still be with them.

"Don't, Codes," Punk told him, his voice strangely gentle. He looked over his shoulder into the woods and a low whine left his throat before he turned back to the other wolf. "It wasn't your fault, it was _mine_.

"I should have protected him, given my life for his, not the other way around. There's no one to blame but me."

"Punk," Chris said, but Punk cut him off with a look.

"Don't, Chris," Punk snarled, his voice shaking and his eyes shot with yellow. He took a deep breath and shook his head. When he spoke again, his voice was back to normal but there was still that undertone of pain and loneliness to it that made Evan feel sorry him.

"So, where is our esteemed Alpha, anyway? And where the hell is everyone else while we're at it."

"He went to go check on Kelly's new pups," Chris told him, sharing a smile with Punk.

"Christ, is she still at it?" Punk snickered, genuinely amused for a second. "Who's the father this time?"

"I don't know," Cody answered, shrugging and trying to sound normal; if anyone would have heard who it was, it would be him. Cody heard almost as much gossip as a hair salon; he just had the kind of face people wanted to confide in. "Kelly's not telling, but I heard it might be Chris."

"Irvine?" Punk asked, rolling his eyes when Cody nodded and smirked. "The more things change, the more they stay the same."

"Well, we'll find out at the next meeting," Cody went on. "The pups'll get introduced then."

"How will you find out?" Evan asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. He blinked when everyone focused on him, embarrassed.

"The pups'll smell like him," Josh explained, smiling a little. "It'll be a mix of both their scents; and a wolf never forgets someone once he's caught their scent."

"Oh, OK," Evan said, nodding. "That makes sense."

"It's why anyone who joins the pack gets introduced first," Alex said, his eyes still watching the trees. He missed the look Evan gave him, but he felt Chris's temper spike and he sighed inwardly.

"Dan, I'm going over to the porch," Chris told him. His voice was even, but the look in his eyes made it clear that he was starting to reach the end of his patience.

"Start running perimeter every half hour. And remember what I said about letting them out of your sight."

He walked over to the porch, rolling his shoulders, his temper seething.

Punk looked after him, his eyebrow raised in disbelief; Chris never lost his temper.

Well, hardly ever, Punk corrected himself, remembering that time when Kevin had tried to pick up Alex even after he told him no. Alex was quite capable of taking care of himself, but he hadn't even gotten the chance to do anything before Chris had been there.

He thought about the tone of Chris's voice when he had said Evan's name before. Maybe things were going to get interesting.

Punk inhaled deeply, the scent of pack around him bringing a lump to his throat. If things were different, he would have been happy to stay here. But without Colt, all he wanted was to die. Maybe then he could see the other half of his soul again.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: **I know this is kind of short, but I really just needed to set things up for the next chapter and also check in with everyone else so they wouldn't feel left out, lol. Enjoy, peeps. Thanks, again, for all the comments and feedback.

Ted sat outside Kelly's house, waiting for Randy to finish checking on the new pups. Traditionally, the Alpha was the only one allowed to see any new pups until they got introduced to the rest of the pack and Ted knew it was one of the things Randy looked forward to.

His ears twitched when he heard Mike and Alex running up to the house, their footsteps as distinct to him as their voices were.

_**He's not done yet? **_Mike demanded, collapsing next to Ted after he greeted him. **_He's getting slower in his old age._**

_**Christ, Mike, do you want Randy to kill you? **_Alex asked, amused with his mate's antics. He settled down next to him, making sure he was in touching distance.

_**Please, Randy fucken loves me, **_Mike scoffed before he turned to Ted. **_Any hint on who's the dad this time? I got fifty on it being Shawn._**

_**I have no idea, **_Ted told him, snickering. **_And if I did know, I sure as hell wouldn't tell ya. I got my own money on it, after all._**

_**Asshole, **_Mike groused, but there was no heat behind it.

They waited in silence for a few more minutes until they could hear Adam and Jay coming up to them.

_**Hey, guys, **_Adam greeted his friends as he and Jay made themselves comfortable. **_Where's Cody?_**

_**I left him with Sabin, **_Ted answered, yawning a little. **_There's nothing here for him to do here and I thought Justin and Evan might like the company._**

_**Good; maybe Cody can knock some sense into Evan's thick skull, **_Jay said, settling next to Adam. **_I hate when everyone's fighting._**

_**I know, Angel, **_Adam said, briefly rubbing his nose against Jay's. **_I'm sure Evan will get his act together._**

_**Ya can't really blame him, **_Ted said, his voice musing. His eyes ran over the surrounding area before turning back to the others. **_First, he gets Turned by that monster and then he finds out one of his new friends isn't who Evan thought he was. _**

_**You can't be condoning his behavior, **_Mike said incredulously, his tone sharper then he meant it to be. When Ted turned and stared at him, Mike showed his throat for a second so Ted would know he didn't mean to insult him. **_He's calling Shelley a monster every fucken chance he gets and acting like Shelley's going to rip his throat every time he so much as looks at him._**

The tone was quieter, but their was no mistaking the sincerity behind the words.

_**Of course, I'm not, **_Ted assured him, sighing a little. **_And honestly, if I was Sabin, I probably would have went after John's throat by now. I just meant, I can understand why Evan was a little shaken, that's all._**

_**It's not just that, Ted, **_Adam said, his own eyes running constantly over the nearby trees while they were talking. **_It's going to start affecting John soon -if it's not already. I don't have to tell you what having Evan scared and nervous all the time is going to do to him. _**

_**Not to mention that Shelley's starting to take it to heart, **_Jay told Ted, his senses alert; he might be submissive to Adam but that in no way meant he was going to sit by and watch if a fight happened now. **_I can't be the only one who's noticed that he's a lot more withdrawn then he was even just a few days ago. Every time I glance at him, Sabin's got his hands all over him, trying to make him feel better. Which isn't that big of a deal, but I can feel the shame and self disgust coming off of him in waves._**

_**I know, **_Mike said simply, his worry evident.

Alex edged closer to his mate, pressing against his body, trying to make him feel better. Mike would never admit it out loud, but Shelley was closest friend after Alex and he didn't like seeing him get so down on himself.

Ted sighed again, resolving to talk to Randy about it when they were alone later on. Having the others come to him with problems that couldn't simply be fought out and decided by who was more dominant was natural. Ted was more accessible then Randy was and no matter how laid back and easy Randy acted, he was always the Alpha; it wasn't something that he could just put to the side. None of them would go to Randy without first talking it over with Ted, unless it was a major problem. And even then, a lot of the lower pack would go to Ted or even one of the others first and trust them to take it to the Alpha if they couldn't fix it.

They all looked up when Randy came out of the house and paused by the front door to talk to one of Kelly's older pups before he walked over.

"Hey, guys," Randy greeted them, stretching before he sat on the ground next to Ted. "How's everything?"

Before anyone could answer, John broke the tree line and trotted towards them.

_**Sorry, I'm late, **_he apologized after greeting Randy and Ted.

Adam gave Ted a pointed look at the weariness that laced John's voice came through loud and clear to the rest of them. Ted nodded, his own concern going up a little.

"No problem," Randy assured him, petting him briefly. "I just got done at Kelly's a few minutes ago."

_**Yeah, **_Ted agreed dryly. **_Mike was just about to attempt a shake down on Randy so he could get the inside scoop._**

John laughed at the indignant look on Mike's face.

_**I was not, **_Mike insisted. **_But I wouldn't object if he wanted to volunteer the information, _**he added slyly, glancing at Randy with a smirk.

Randy rolled his eyes. "No, Mike; you can wait with everyone else. It won't kill you to have some patience."

_**Patience, my ass, **_Mike grumbled.

_**So, what next? **_Adam asked, hoping to try and help distract John by having something to do.

"Since everything's quiet for now, I want to check on some of the teenagers," Randy answered, standing up and motioning everyone to follow him. "I decided to leave Matt and Jeff up by the border, so -"

Randy stiffened, his eyes flashing green as he picked up his mate's fear. _**Justin? Did something happen? Are you, OK?**_

He barely noticed Ted and John's eyes changing or the way everyone else was starting to tense up for a fight.

_**I'm fine. There's just someone here I don't know, **_Justin told him, confused.

Before Randy could do more then breathe a sigh of relief that they weren't under attack, Chris was talking to him.

_**Randy. Punk's here.**_

Chris sounded as shocked as he felt. Randy looked at Ted and saw the same complete and utter disbelief in his face.

Despite what he had told the others, Randy had never expected his cousin to show up; the ties that bound them were tight, but Randy had believed that Colt's death would be too painful for him to even try to come back home.

_**Punk, **_Randy said, his voice badly shaken. **_I – thank you._**

There was no answer but Randy knew Punk had to have heard him. He waited another minute, but when there still wasn't an answer, he turned his attention back to the wolves around him.

Randy could tell by the looks on everyone's faces that either Ted or John had told them what happened. He opened his mouth to say something, but shut it again, afraid that if he talked right now, his voice would crack.

_**The teenagers, right? **_Alex offered, giving Randy a chance to gain his composure again.

Randy nodded, Changing and leading the way into the trees.

He hoped that Punk showing up meant that he was finally starting to forgive himself and that he was ready to be part of the pack again.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N:** Sorry this took so long to post. The muses were on strike, in between the heat and -well, you'll see. Thanks to everyone who's still reading this; I hope you enjoy the chapter.

"So, what the hell's going on with him?" Punk asked as he walked over to the porch with Alex.

Alex sighed and glanced over his shoulder at Evan. "It's nothing really; you know how Chris gets."

"Uh-huh," Punk said. "Right. I'm sure in the two and a half years I've been gone he's turned into a huge, smothering pain in your ass."

Alex snickered, rolling his eyes. "Alright, fucktard, I get your point. I just didn't know if you wanted to hear it."

Punk gave him a look that said everything he needed it to.

"It's not a big deal," Alex told him, looking at the porch where Chris was leaning on the railing. "Did Randy tell you why he asked you to come back?"

"Yeah, his mate's in trouble," Punk answered, shrugging. His words were vague but Alex could hear the constant pain that had been there for the past couple years and that would stay there until Punk finally joined Colt again.

"Well, Evan -the other newborn- joined the pack the same time Justin did," Alex explained as they got closer to the front of the house. "Everything was fine, but when we found out that their Maker was coming back we ended up telling them how I was before -"

"What, that you were a homicidal maniac until Chris beat your ass into shape?" Punk asked, ducking the slap to his head Alex aimed at him but he couldn't quite dodge the elbow that followed.

"Let me guess, Evan's acting pissy about it, it's upsetting you which is upsetting Chris and John's about to get his ass beat," Punk went on and shook his head when Alex nodded. "Fucken moron. I don't know what his deal is with it; vamps are predators, too. It's not like you're munching on babies and murdering school children in your spare time."

"You have such a way with words," Chris drawled, an amused smile on his face. "How'd we ever survive while you were gone?"

Punk smirked but didn't say anything, just leaned against the porch and scanned the yard, his senses just as alert as everyone else's.

_**Every time he talks you can hear it, **_Alex told Chris, leaning against the porch railing under Chris, mimicking his stance so that he was watching the woods, too. **_I used to think that coming back here would be the best thing for him, but now..._**

_**I know, **_Chris sighed, leaning down to drop a quick kiss on the top of Alex's head. He felt rather then saw Punk flinch at the gesture and sighed again. **_Seeing all of us paired up would be bad enough, but then to feel Colt every where and see him every time he turned around? Sometimes, I think it would have been better for him if he had never survived._**

It might sound cruel to anyone who wasn't mated and couldn't understand the sheer weight of constant pain that Punk must be feeling, but Alex knew what Chris meant. Surviving the attack wasn't the gift it looked to outsiders; Punk was already trying to do his best to get killed, and Alex knew it was only a matter of time before he got what he wanted.

"I can't believe he came back," Cody said, the sheer shock of it still in his voice. "I thought he would never come near here again."

"I know," Dan murmured and Josh nodded, both sounding and looking as confused as Cody.

Justin and Evan looked at each other, feeling lost. They had never met Punk and didn't know what he was like before, but Justin couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He couldn't ever imagine losing Randy the way Punk had lost his mate.

"Is he staying?" Evan asked quietly, his eyes on the ground. He felt for Punk; being alone like that wasn't good for anyone.

"I don't know," Dan answered. "I doubt it, though. I don't think he's ever going to be able to stay here for too long."

"It reminds him of Colt," he explained when he saw the confusion on the newborns faces. "They both grew up here; every tree, every _inch_ of our territory probably screams memories at him."

"You can see it in his eyes," Cody added, his own distant. "His pain, guilt, sorrow, loneliness, it's killing him. And being here is only magnifying it. He's already pushing limits, trying to force someone to hurt him badly enough that he can't recover from it. I'm afraid being here is only going to make that worse when he leaves again."

Evan looked over his shoulder, his eyes skimming over Punk to look at where Sabin and Shelley were standing. He frowned; usually they couldn't keep their hands off of each other, now they were barely touching.

"It's out of respect for Punk," Josh told him, following his gaze and answering the question in it. "Whatever you might think of Shelley, he's not going to rub the fact that he still has his own mate in Punk's face.

"And Sabin and Punk used to be really close, neither one of them are going to do anything to make Punk feel worse then he already does. I was still a teenager when Punk was here and Colt was alive; even then Punk was kind of a loner. I didn't know him very well and even I wouldn't do something like that to him. None of us would."

Evan bit his lip and turned his head; he still couldn't bring himself to even _look_ at Shelley the same way again, never mind trust him.

"Something's not right," Dan muttered, frowning. His eyes scanned the woods for the tenth time in as many minutes. He couldn't tell if his nerves were playing tricks on him or if there really was something going on. "It's too quiet; there's not even birds singing. There's no noise at all."

Chris straightened up and narrowed his eyes. Alex looked around, his fangs out as he reacted to the tension he could feel in his mate.

Punk looked at them and then the trees; he knew better then to think that either one of them were jumping at shadows, he'd known them for too long.

Chris vaulted over the railing, landing on his feet. Motioning Alex and Punk to follow him, he walked over to the others.

"I think -" Dan began, but Chris held up a hand and cut him off.

_**Don't talk out loud, **_Chris instructed. **_Did either one of you see anything?_**

_**No, but something's not right, **_Dan told him. **_It's too quiet; I can't even hear any animals._**

_**He's right, **_Alex agreed. **_The only time it's this quiet is before a big storm or -_**

_**Or if there's something trying to hunt, **_Chris finished grimly. **_Dan and Josh, I want you to take the newborns into the house and -_**

_**Too late, **_Punk said, and there was a strange kind of gleefulness to his words that had all the wolves looking at him. **_We've got company._**

Chris hissed; coming out of the woods were three vampires. They were all a decent height, Chris pegged the tallest at about six and change, and the smallest at around six even.

Evan whimpered, clutching at Justin and hiding his face in the other newborn's shoulder. Justin stared at them, panic starting to bite at him.

_**Justin, Evan, **_Chris said sharply as he and the others formed a loose semi circle around the submissives. **_I need you to tell me who's who._**

_**Wade's the tall one, **_Justin answered, desperately trying to keep his composure. **_The short one is Dave. And I've only seen the other one once or twice. Mike, maybe? _**

Chris nodded, keeping his eyes on the enemy. They fanned out and headed straight for them. Chris motioned Alex and Punk on either side of him and walked forward.

"Hello, mate," Wade said, a smug grin on his face. "It looks like you've got some of my property here. I'll be glad to take it off your hands."

"Really? That's funny," Chris told him, raising an eyebrow at his words. "Last time I checked, you weren't the Alpha around here, and since everyone else here is pack, you don't have a say in shit. I suggest you get the fuck out of here before you end up with your head in a different county then your body."

_**Randy, where the hell are you? **_Chris asked, making sure his face didn't look as worried as he was starting to feel.

_**At the border, talking to some of the teenagers, **_Randy answered. **_What happened?_**

_**The vampires are here, **_Chris told him. **_We've got things under control for now, but you need to get back here as soon as possible._**

_**We're on the way, **_Randy said. Chris could hear the rage and fear in Randy's voice, and he hoped, for the other vampires sakes, that they were dead before Randy got there.

"Come on, now; you don't want to get hurt, do you?" Wade asked, his voice reasonable.

"Please, do I look like a fucken newborn?" Alex scoffed. "You couldn't fucken hurt me if you're life depended on it."

"Which it does," Punk added, smirking. "Of course, I sincerely doubt _any_ of you are going to manage to stay alive for the rest of today. Well, as alive as you guys get."

"Come on, man, that was a little uncalled for," Alex told him, acting as unconcerned as if they were getting ready to hunt deer. "I mean, I am standing right here -that could have hurt my feelings; I could be offended."

"Yeah, right," Punk snickered. "In the first place, it would take more then that to hurt your feelings and, in the second, I once saw you high five Adam when we walked in on Jay giving him head. You don't get offended."

"That's not the point, douchebag," Alex insisted. "The point is -"

_**Dan, Josh, I want you to take them and go through the woods, **_Chris instructed, smirking at the confused look on the other vampires' faces. **_Keep going until you run into Randy._**

_**But I don't – **_Dan started before Chris cut him off.

_**Shut up, **_Chris snapped, his power flaring. Dan flinched and hurried to show his neck even though Chris wasn't looking at him.

Alex flinched, being careful not to let anything show on his face. Next to him, he could feel Punk twitch a little and even the other vampires looked like they felt it.

Cody whimpered a little, moving closer to Justin and Evan. _**Teddy?**_

_**We're on the way, Baby Boy, **_Ted told him, his voice tight. _**Do whatever Sabin tells you to. Understand?**_

_**Yeah. I will, **_Cody promised. _**Love you, Teddy.**_

_**I love ya, too, Baby Boy, **_Ted said, his voice softening a little.

_**Randy, **_Justin called out, tightening his grip on Evan. **_Where are you?_**

_**I'm running as fast as I can, **_Randy assured him grimly. **_I'll be there as soon as possible. Listen to Chris and do whatever he tells you. No matter what it is, understand me?_**

_**OK, I will, **_Justin answered, wishing his mate was with him. **_But you'll be here soon, right?_**

_**Hell couldn't keep me away from you, **_Randy swore. **_I'll get there; be careful._**

_**John, **_Evan said, panicking. **_They're here; Wade's here! What do I do?_**

_**Stay calm, **_John ordered, his voice firm. **_We're heading for you as fast as we can go. Keep calm, and listen when Sabin or Shelley tell you something. _**

_**But I don't -they -Shelley, **_Evan stammered, his throat closing.

_**Shelley's not going to hurt you, **_John told him. **_Believe me. Just hang on until we get there._**

_**Take them and keep going until you reach Randy, **_Chris repeated, every word backed up with power. **_As soon as the fighting starts and they're distracted, you leave. Do you understand?_**

_**Yes, sir, **_Dan answered, still showing his neck. He had never heard that edge of demand and authority in Chris's voice before and it occurred to him that if he wanted to, Chris could give Ted a run for his money. **_I understand._**

"Look, do you really want to do this?" Chris asked, sounding bored. "I mean, is it worth the true death? You're not going to get out of this any other way, not once the fighting starts. I've got nothing planned for today, but if you wanted to do anything else, now would be the time."

Wade smirked again, but there was a definite doubt in his eyes now. "My pride's on the line, you understand."

Chris shrugged. "It's your death, buddy."

He smiled at him, his fangs resting on his bottom lip and his eyes bleeding to black. Chris walked across the few feet that separated them until he was in front of Wade. Alex and Punk mimicked him, Alex on Chris's right and Punk on his left.

Punk flexed his fingers, feeling his claws slice out. There was a strange kind of exhilaration flowing through him; it wasn't just the adrenaline from the upcoming fight, although that was there, too. He couldn't help wondering -_hoping_- if this was going to be the one who was better then him, if this was the fight that was going to end his punishment. His eyes went yellow at the thought and he couldn't help the grin that curled his lips.

Alex could feel the adrenaline pumping through his system, making him eager for the fight ahead; his blood was practically singing for it. His aggression was fast taking over everything else and as his eyes went black, he felt that dull detachment from his conscious that happened sometimes. It worried him for a second, but he could still feel his connection to Chris and that anchored him, made him relax into the red haze in his brain that was cutting off everything except for the vampire standing in front of him. Alex smiled sharply, dangerously, and took vicious pleasure in the fact that the enemy flinched away from it. He ran his tongue over his fangs and the smiled turned into a grin.

Chris inhaled sharply; his own body was preparing him for the fight ahead. And while he was just as eager for it as Alex and Punk, he needed to make sure he didn't completely lose his head; he was the most dominant one here and that made him responsible for everyone else.

All six of them stared at each other for what seemed like an endless space of minutes before Wade swung at Chris, and the fight started.

_**Leave now, **_Chris ordered Dan and Josh, easily ducking the punch and delivering one of his own that landed on Wade's stomach.

Wade sucked in a breath, stumbling away from Chris. Not just from the punch, but also from Chris's power, he could feel it biting at his skin, making it feel like it was taking chunks out of him.

Chris smirked; he had taken all restraints off of himself and had let his power surge and go wherever it wanted to. He advanced on him, ducking another wild punch Wade threw and hit him in the Adam's apple as hard as he could, making Wade gasp and drop to his knees.

Alex dodged a punch, slipping behind the vampire -Mike, he thought his name was, not that it really mattered- and landed a knee in the small of Mike's back, as hard as he could manage. Mike lurched forward on to his knees. Alex stood behind him, smirking. With a quick twist, he broke the other vampire's neck. Hesitating for a minute, he glanced at Punk.

_**Punk, do me a favor? **_Alex asked, watching as Punk kept moving out of the vampire's reach; catching him with kicks and punches before he danced out of the way again. **_Take this guy's head off? I'll keep your vampire warmed up for you._**

_**Jesus, Shelley, do I have to do everything around here? **_Punk snickered before he switched places with Alex. **_Don't kill him, asshole, or I'll be pissed; I'm just starting to have fun._**

Alex rolled his eyes and just kicked the other vampire's feet out from him while Punk used his claws to behead the one Alex had been fighting.

_**Done already? **_Chris asked, his voice steady. He was moving gracefully; ducking and dodging punches and kicks as easily as if he was just playing a game. When he moved to the side of Wade and threw his arm against Wade's chest and sent him into the dirt, Alex gave an appreciative hum at the way the muscles in Chris's shoulder and back moved.

_**Yeah; he was really weak, **_Alex said, kicking the vampire -Dave, maybe- in the ribs. **_I'm guessing no one even taught him the basics; Punk's finishing him up._**

_**There, **_Punk told them, kicking the head a few feet away. He rubbed the back of his hand across his face, leaving a trail of blood behind. **_If there's nothing else, I'll be over here, kicking ass._**

_**Want some help? **_Alex asked, sliding behind Wade and raising an eyebrow at his mate.

_**Sure, **_Chris almost purred. **_Maybe you could help me with something else later on._**

They worked on Wade in silence for a few minutes; after fifty years, they didn't need to talk everything out when they were doing something.

"Evan!" Dan called out, chasing the newborn as he was running back into the clearing. _**Get back here!**_

Chris and Alex both turned; Alex could see Punk doing the same out of the corner of his eye. Wade took advantage of the momentary diversion to send both Chris and Alex flying before heading for Evan.

Dave picked something up off the ground and hit Punk in the throat with it. Punk stumbled a few steps and then attacked him, growling and snarling.

"Well, well, if it isn't my little Evan," Wade taunted as he got closer. "I would of thought you'd be halfway to the next state by now, but you've always been a bit of a fucken wanker, haven't you?"

Evan froze, staring at the monster headed for him, remembering every thing that he had ever done to him. In his panic, he couldn't hear either John or Dan, who were both screaming at him to run.

Dan jumped at Wade managing to knock him back a few steps before Wade sent him flying.

"Fuck off," Evan managed to stammer out, barely even aware of the fact that he was speaking. "I fucken hate you. I can't wait for you to die."

Wade growled, raising his hand to slap Evan. Alex shoved Evan out of the way, taking the slap to the head. Chris was right behind him, shoving Wade full force to give Alex a minute to get to his feet.

_**Get the fuck out of here! **_Chris yelled, his voice and power making Evan shudder and Dan flinch. **_Dan, Change and fucken chase him if you have to. He needs to get the fuck out of here before someone gets fucken killed because of him._**

_**I'm sorry, **_Evan apologized, getting to his feet. **_I didn't mean -_**

_**I'm fucken tired of your apologies, **_Chris hissed, punching Wade in the stomach and then kicking his legs out from under him. **_Get the fuck out of here._**

Dan Changed and ran up behind Evan, shoving him with his head and then snapping at him when he hesitated.

They got Wade onto his knees and Chris slipped behind him and broke his neck. He dropped onto the ground, out of the way until his neck healed. Chris could feel Randy getting closer, so he left Wade for Randy to finish off.

They walked over to where they could see Punk taking the last vampire's head. He dropped it onto the ground, smirking at Chris and Alex.

"See? I always end up doing -" Punk staggered, falling into Chris.

"Fuck, Punk, you all right?" Chris asked, grabbing him so he wouldn't fall.

Punk lifted his hand and pressed it against his throat. When he pulled back, Alex could see fresh blood on his palm. Chris started cursing and helped Punk until he was sitting on the ground. Chris could see where his carotid was ripped open.

"That bastard got me; but the fucken joke's on him," Punk sneered weakly, his voice hoarse. "I wanted this to happen."

"Jesus, Punk, fucken Change," Chris ordered, his voice shaking. Alex swallowed and wrapped his arm around Chris's waist; he knew how this was going to end. Punk laid down on the ground, shaking his head.

"No," Punk said firmly before he smiled. "You're not my damn Alpha, Sabin, and I want this. I need to see Colt again; I can't take being away from him any more."

"I am, though," Randy said gently, kneeling on the other side of his cousin. He looked into Punk's eyes, and for the first time in almost three years, he saw hope there. Taking a deep breath, he placed his hand on Punk's chest. "Go with your Alpha's blessing. One day, we'll hunt on the same ground again."

Punk nodded, closing his eyes. "Good hunting, cousin," he moved his hand to grip Chris's before he sighed.

Chris knelt next to his friend, resting his head against Alex's. "I couldn't save him, 'Lex."

"He didn't want to be saved," Randy told him, placing his hand on the back of Chris's neck. "It was only a matter of time before it happened."

Chris nodded, keeping his eyes on the ground. Randy sighed and got up. Tomorrow they would bury Punk, next to Colt where he belonged. But for now, they had to deal with this mess.


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: **So, guys, here we are. Only a few more chapters 'til the end of this; two or three, plus the epilogue. I can't thank everyone enough for continuing reading this. Especially **candy_belle** and **energy_purple**, without them and their feedback/support, I doubt that I would have been able to finish this. Thanks, guys, and I hope you like the rest of this story.

Randy turned and looked around the clearing. He could see Ted hugging Cody, trying to coax him into calming down a little. John was doing the same to Evan and Justin was headed right for him, his face upset and Randy could feel his concern through their bond.

_**I'm so sorry, **_Justin told him, wrapping his arms around Randy's waist. **_It's all right, _**Randy sighed, dropping a kiss on Justin's hair.

After one last hug, he let go of his mate and turned to face everyone else. They were varying degrees of sadness on their faces, but there was no surprise or even disquiet there. Everyone knew that this had been coming since the day Colt had died and Punk hadn't.

"What happened?" Randy asked, looking around the clearing and noting the two headless vampires a foot or so away.

"Wade's still alive," Chris told him when he noticed Randy looking at the other vampires. "We thought you might want to deal with him yourself," he added, his voice dead. He squeezed Punk's hand one last time before he got to his feet and went to stand by Randy.

Randy nodded. "How long will he be out for?"

"Until his neck heals." Alex answered, giving his mate a worried look. "His healing ability will depend on his age, but from what I was able to pick up from fighting him, he's not that old. I'd guess, a half hour, maybe forty minutes."

"Considering you're pretty ancient, I guess you'd heal a little faster, huh?" Mike snickered as Randy motioned for Adam and Jay to get Wade and bring him over to them.

"Probably about fifteen minutes," Alex told him, smiling a little. "I've never broken my neck before, but -"

"It's my fault," Chris said suddenly, looking at Randy. "I should have -"

"Stop," Randy ordered. "Start at the beginning and tell me what happened."

"After Punk showed up, it was quiet for a few minutes, but then it got _too_ quiet," Chris explained, that same dead tone in his voice. "Once Wade and the others showed up, I told Dan and Josh to take the others and go through the woods and keep going until they ran into you."

"It was going good; Josh and I were on each side of the group, and -" Dan hesitated, glancing at John and Evan before sighing and continuing. "All of a sudden, Evan stopped and turned around. He took off before I could stop him, and wouldn't listen when I yelled for him to stop running."

"Evan broke into the clearing, and distracted us, all of us," Alex said quietly. He didn't blame Evan for what happened to Punk; he knew that it had been inevitable that it ended like this. The only thing that had been up for change was the time. What really worried him was the state Chris was in. "Wade knocked us back and headed for Evan, but we were able to stop him before Evan got hurt. "

"It's my fault," Chris repeated, barely noticing when Alex placed his hand on the small of his back. He took comfort in it, and he knew Alex was trying to help, but it didn't distract him from what he was saying. "I should have known Evan wouldn't listen to me. I was the one in charge; _it's my own fault_."

Randy sighed, closing his eyes for a minute before he looked at Chris. "Chris, what happened would have happened if anyone else had been here, even me.

"Should you have looked away from the fight? Probably not; but, Punk knew better then to look himself, and he did it anyway. I saw the wound on his neck; he could have healed himself. One Change and he would have been healed, but _he didn't want to_.

"That was his choice, Chris, and you had no control over it. Punk knew exactly what he was doing when he made it. I'm not surprised that it came down to this, and I know once you get over your guilt and grief, you won't be, either."

Randy placed his hand on the back of Chris's neck and rested their foreheads against each other.

_**Don't blame yourself. It's not your fault. Understand?**_

When Chris nodded reluctantly, Randy moved his hand and turned to everyone else; he'd let Alex finish comforting Chris.

Alex rubbed his hand up and down Chris's back soothingly. _**He's right, babe; and as big an asshole as Punk could be, you know he wouldn't want you to blame yourself for this.**_

_**I know, 'Lex, **_Chris answered, and while he was still obviously upset, his voice had lost that dead quality that had scared the shit out of Alex earlier. _**And I know that this was what he wanted; every time I looked at him, I could tell he was mourning Colt.**_

_**Hell, I even admit that, as fucked up as it sounds, that this is better then him living in despair for the rest of his life. But I'm going to miss that fucker. **_

Alex smiled in relief; if Chris was already trying to lighten the mood, he was going to be OK.

"Evan," Randy started to say and then shook his head; just like he said it wasn't Chris's fault for what happened to Punk, he didn't think it was Evan's either. But there was a bigger issue here then Evan distracting everyone.

"I don't blame you for Punk; I'll say the same thing to you that I said to Chris: it was his choice, his decision and one that I'm not surprised he made.

"But, there is something that happened today that _is_ your fault. You disobeyed an order from someone that outranks you, and you did this not once, but twice. That's something that I can't ignore -if things had happened different, it could have been you laying on the ground and John going crazy.

"You'll be punished for that -or, more accurately, John will. Hopefully, this will teach you to listen when someone gives you an order."

"I didn't mean to," Evan said softly, his eyes down. He moved closer to John, trying to get as close as he could right now. "I didn't think it would do anything. I mean, I just didn't think -"

"Didn't think what?" Mike asked, raising an eyebrow when Evan looked at him. "That you should follow orders? Or was it that you didn't want to follow _Chris's_ orders? You ignored both your Alpha and your mate, and then Dan, why? Out of spite?"

"Mike," John said, a warning note in his voice. "Now's not the -"

"Fuck that, John," Mike snapped, moving away from his mate and Ted to go stand in front of the other wolf. "With all respect, I think now's the perfect fucken time to get into this.

"You ignored Chris when he told you to leave and keep going; you ignored Dan when he tried to keep you from coming back here. Hell, you're own mate told you to turn around, and you still kept going.

"Of course, Chris wanted you to die. I mean, he is Alex's mate, and obviously Alex wants you dead. When he told you to get away from Wade, he obviously sent you toward a trap. Never mind that he sent you there with four other people; one of whom was his Alpha's mate.

"As far as Dan's concerned, well, I guess he hates you, too. It only makes sense. I mean, everyone wants to kill you, right? The whole pack, probably, but those three for sure. Ever since you heard part of what Shelley used to be like, you've acted like he's going to kill you.

"The whole fucken world revolves around you, right? You learn something you don't like, and automatically that means it has to do with you. Like, everyone's got nothing better to do then come up with ways to -"

"That's enough, Mike," Randy said softly, his eyes on Evan. Mike backed away, but there was still a gleam in his eye that said he hadn't said everything he wanted. Evan looked at John and bit his lip, but it looked like he was thinking about what Mike had said. Randy hoped he was; nothing anyone else had said had gotten through to the newborn, maybe Mike would be able to.

"Ted, take Adam and take Punk's body and put it on my back porch; it can stay there until we bury him tomorrow night. John, Evan, you're coming with me. Everyone else, gather all the extra body parts and burn them. Keep an eye on Sleeping Beauty -" Randy paused long enough to kick Wade. "-I'll be back in a few minutes to deal with him."

He headed for the woods, John and Evan following more slowly after him.

"Christ, did you have to take their heads off?" Mike asked as he picked one up. With a grin, he yelled to Jay and then tossed it to him.

Jay rolled his eyes but caught it neatly and dropped it on the ground where there was a break from the grass and leaves.

Cody wrinkled his nose and shoved Justin playfully when the newborn laughed at him. "Chris, is it all right if go in your guy's house and get a lighter or matches?"

"Yeah, go ahead," Chris waved them off with a smile. "We wouldn't want to upset your delicate nerves."

Justin flipped him off and walked off with Cody, both of them talking together in low whispers. Alex and Mike each grabbed one of the dead vampire bodies and dragged them over, putting them next to the head Jay had put on the ground.

Watching Mike and Alex play catch with the remaining head while Riley and Jay stood there laughing at them, Chris knew that where ever Punk was, he was finally just as happy as they were.


	29. Chapter 29

Randy stood over John, petting his head to let him know they were done.

"Remember this the next time you don't want to listen," Randy said softly, his words for Evan. With a last affectionate ruffle of John's hair, he turned and walked away, leaving the mates alone.

Once he was sure Randy was gone, Evan went to John and dropped down to his knees and wrapped his arms around him.

"I'm sorry," Evan murmured, burying his face in John's neck. "I know it doesn't mean anything, but I am."

"It means something," John assured him, rubbing his hand down Evan's back before hugging him. "I want you to be happy, Ev; but this thing with Sabin and Shelley, you need to settle it."

"I know I do," Evan said softly, taking a deep breath. "I'm going to apologize to them; especially Shelley. He didn't deserve what I said about him. And after I saw Wade again, I knew it. I was just scared, I guess... I don't know."

John hugged him one more time before he stood up and helped Evan to his feet. "Come on, let's get back to the others."

As they walked, Evan glanced out the corner of his eye at the nasty bruise that was along the right side of John's face. "Your face," he murmured. "I'm sorry."

"What, this?" John asked, tapping a finger on the bruise and laughing. "It's nothing; as soon as I Change, it'll heal."

"Well, Change then," Evan said, stopping in his tracks. "I don't like seeing you all bruised -especially when it's my fault."

"I can't; it's against pack law," John explained at the confused look on his mate's face. He reached over and tugged on Evan's hand to get him to start walking again. "If I healed myself as soon as I got punished, it wouldn't be much of a lesson, would it? I have to stay like this until I'm healed normally -or a half hour passes."

Evan nodded; it did make sense and he could see the point of it. He kept his hand in John's, trying to figure out how he was going to apologize to Alex.

Randy walked back into the clearing, shaking his head when he saw Mike and Shelley playing catch with one of the dead vampires' head. He supposed he should stop them, but he let it go. They deserved a little down time after the stress of the last couple days.

He could see Justin and Cody coming back from Sabin and Shelley's house, their heads close together as the snickered about something; Dan and Josh were a couple feet behind them and Josh was laughing at something Dan was saying to him.

Randy smiled when he noticed Dan tilting his head to the side and a familiar gleam enter his eyes. Even as he was smirking about it, Randy reminded himself to tell Dan and Josh that they weren't on guard duty any more.

Chris spotted Randy and wandered over by him, smiling a little.

"Doesn't take much to amuse them," Randy murmured. He scanned the clearing, his eyes lingering on Wade's prone body.

"Could you imagine if those two needed anything more complicated then that to entertain themselves?" Chris said, wincing. "It's too horrifying to contemplate."

Randy opened his mouth but closed it when he noticed the maniacal gleam in Mike's eye and the devious smile curling Alex's lips. Chris was right, he decided. He didn't want to think about it, even briefly.

Justin wrapped himself around Randy's waist, resting his head on his mate's shoulder. Randy dropped a kiss on the top of his hair, raising an eyebrow at the smirk on Cody's face.

"Yes, Codes?" Randy asked, moving his arm to place it on Justin's shoulder.

"Oh, nothing," Cody said, innocently. He glanced over his shoulder as everyone started moving towards them, Alex dropping the head in the pile before he went to go stand next to Chris. "It's nice to see you not being surly for once."

Randy felt Justin tense for a second before he relaxed when he didn't say anything. Cody grinned up at him, confident in his place as Randy's friend and all around pet of the pack.

"I'm going to tell Ted to keep you on a shorter leash," Randy told him, playfully punching his shoulder.

"Either that, or keep your mouth too full to say much of anything," Jay said, snickering at the glare Cody leveled him with. "Give it up, Cody; it's like having a squirrel try to scare me, it's not going to work."

"Oh, just for that, I'm telling Teddy," Cody pouted, trying to keep from smiling.

"Tell me what?" Ted drawled as he walked up with Adam. Cody immediately wrapped himself around the bigger wolf and rubbed his face against Ted's chest.

Recognizing Cody's tactics, Ted rolled his eyes even as he put his arm around Cody. "Teddy, Jay said I was -"

There was a groan from nearby as Wade started moving. Instantly, there was a chorus of growls as mates were shoved behind the dominants and claws and fangs came out.

In two seconds, Randy had Wade by his throat, holding him up off the ground.

"You," Randy snarled, his clutching convulsively on the vampire's throat, his caws slicing through his skin, making blood pour down his arm. "You should have just stayed away."

Wade's mouth opened, but he couldn't really saying anything. After a minute of trying, he managed to spit out, "Mine. They're...mine."

Randy growled again, this one gaining in volume until anyone a few hundred yards away would've heard it. His eyes turned green and he lost control enough that a thin sheen of fur spread over his body. He shuddered when Ted put his hand on his shoulder and Chris touched his side.

Taking a deep breath, he controlled himself enough that his eyes stayed wolf, but the fur disappeared back inside his skin, receding almost like a wave at a beach.

"Ted," Randy said, motioning his second with his head to the pile of bodies. Ted nodded and grabbed the lighter from Cody, dropping a kiss on his forehead before he walked over to the pile. After adding some sticks and a few leaves, he crouched down and after a minute, a few flames started; steadily getting bigger as the fire ate more and more oxygen.

Randy slowly walked closer to the blaze, watching Wade panic and start fighting to get loose. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Chris and Alex's instinctive flinch as they got closer; but other then Chris putting his hand on the back of Alex's neck briefly, they didn't falter.

"You should have stayed away," Randy repeated, his own fury clear. "You'd still have your life; trust me when I tell you that this going to hurt more then anything you've ever felt before.

"And, you can also believe that I'm going to enjoy every second of it," Randy snarled before he dropped Wade into the bonfire, where he immediately caught on fire.

The pack stood with their Alpha, until Wade's screams stopped, until the fire burned itself out. Dawn was just streaking through the sky, and it was a somber group that turned and headed for their respective houses.


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: Here it is, peeps, the last chapter. Thanks to everyone who's stayed with this from the beginning. Thanks for leaving feedback, comments and putting this on alert and favorite on ffnet. Special thanks to: ****candy_belle**** for all the support and for loving the pack as much as I do.**

Alex walked through the woods, heading toward the graveyard. The ceremony to bury Punk had been last night, and he knew Chris would want to say his goodbyes privately.

He was about halfway there when he heard someone coming up behind him. Alex paused when he recognized Evan coming through the trees toward him.

"Hey, thanks for waiting," Evan told him, a sheepish smile on his face. "I wanted to talk to you."

Alex sighed inwardly, but put on a polite smile; he really didn't want to get into it with Evan today. He made sure to keep it from Chris; the last thing he wanted was for Chris to feel him get upset.

"So, what's up?" Alex asked, resuming his walk toward his mate.

"Nothing," Evan answered, looking at the other vampire for a second before glancing away. "I wanted to apologize to you.

"I shouldn't have called a monster; you don't deserve it. Not any of it, but especially that. As soon as I saw Wade again, I knew it."

Alex stopped and stared, clearly surprised. If he was being honest with himself, he had never expected Evan to apologize. Hell, he had never expected Evan to admit he was wrong; the most Alex had thought would happen would be a ceasing of outright hostility.

_**What's going on, 'Lex? **_Chris asked, his concern evident. If Alex concentrated on it, he could feel the ground Chris was sitting on, see the gravestone where Punk's name had been added under Colt's.

Philip Jack Brooks and Scott Colton. Alex felt a kind of rightness now that they were together again and he knew he wasn't the only one.

He dragged his mind back to the conversation when he felt Chris's growing agitation at his silence.

_**Nothing's wrong, babe, **_Alex soothed, knowing his mate was on edge from the past few days. _**Evan just apologized to me, that's all; it took me by surprise.**_

There was a pause as Chris processed this; Alex could picture the way he would be tapping his fingers on the ground, his head tilted to the side as he thought his way through it.

_**Does he mean it? **_Chris asked finally, a note of warning to his voice. Alex knew it was for the other vampire, not him, and for a brief second he was extremely glad he had never had Chris that angry with him before.

_**Yeah, I think he does, **_Alex assured him as he started walking again, Evan falling into step next to him automatically.

_**It's about time, **_Chris snorted, his disdain obvious.

_**I'll be there soon, **_Alex told him, smiling fondly at Chris's words. If there was one thing he could always count on it was the fact that Chris would always have his back.

"Thanks," Alex finally said out loud. "I appreciate it," he added, his voice soft.

"You deserved it," Evan said, shrugging. He bit his lip before he went on. "I don't know why I freaked out like that; I just..."

Evan trailed off and shook his head. "It doesn't matter; I was wrong. End of story."

"It's OK," Alex told him. He looked at the trees and smiled, but there was no humor in it. "I would have deserved it when I was first Turned."

_**Sometimes I think I still do, **_Alex added silently, his self disgust clear.

_**'Lex, **_Chris said warningly. **_You know better. You're not that person any more. If I have to throw you to the ground and remind you of that, I've got no problem doing it._**

_**I know you don't, **_Alex said and he couldn't help the slight shudder that went through him at his mate's words.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" Evan questioned hesitatingly, his nervousness apparent to the other vampire.

"Sure," Alex answered, forcing his mind away from Chris's words and the knowing chuckle that was filling his head. "What's up?"

"I was wondering if you would tell me what it was like for you before Chris," Evan said, his words rushing together.

Alex sighed and nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'll tell you -if you're sure you really want to know. But not right now," he went on at Evan's nod. "Have John drop you off next week some time."

Evan nodded again just as they broke through the trees to the graveyard. They paused for a second, taking in the surroundings before Alex headed to a corner of the small clearing.

"I always expect this place to be bigger," Evan commented, his voice quiet.

"Wolves live a long time," Alex offered as an explanation, his eyes fixed on the spot where his mate was leaning back on his hands, a smile on his face as he talked softly. "And some times, a wolf will leave when they're close to dying."

Evan digested that news, unable to deny the relief he felt at the thought. Even though they hadn't been mated for long, the idea of being without John made his heart hurt.

"Wait, how long do vampires live for?"

"Until they decide they don't want to any more," Alex said simply, looking at the younger vampire. "A vampire's life is infinite -unless you want to meet the true death, you'll live forever."

Evan relaxed a little, frowning as they got closer to Chris and he could hear Chris talking.

"Hey, babe," Chris greeted him as soon as they were within touching distance. He got his feet, rubbing his hand over the top of Punk and Colt's gravestone before he turned to his mate and Evan.

He raised an eyebrow at the nervous look Evan gave him, but other wise ignored him.

"Ready for this 'special' meeting?" He asked as he threw an arm around Alex's shoulders and they started walking away.

Evan stood there, chewing on his bottom lip, undecided if he should follow them or "call" for John to come meet him. He was just about to give in and let John know to meet him, when Chris stopped.

"You coming, Evan, or are you going to stand there and look pretty?" Chris asked over his shoulder.

It was a peace offer of sorts and Evan smiled in relief as he hurried to catch up to them. Maybe he hadn't burned his bridges completely after all.

Randy stood in the middle of the pack's meeting place, looking over his people as they came in to the clearing in twos and threes. Glancing behind him, he smiled at the sight of Justin sitting next to Cody, their heads bent together as they laughed over something.

Ted had one hand tangled in Cody's hair as he argued with Jay over something, while Jay just looked amused and shook his head.

Adam was talking to John, his hand rubbing up and down Jay's back while John petted the top of Evan's head, Evan's eyes closed in contentment as he leaned against his mate's legs.

Sabin and Alex were almost in hysterics at something Shelley and Mike were saying to them. Despite the past couple days, Randy felt better then he had in months.

"This isn't our normal meeting time," Randy started once everyone had settled down and were looking at him expectantly.

"But in light of what happened yesterday," Randy paused while everyone lowered their heads and said Punk's name respectfully; Punk died protecting the pack, and there was no greater honor as far as wolves were concerned.

"I called us together to remind us all that even if though we lost a pack-mate, we still have reasons to celebrate; there are two new members of the pack that need to be greeted."

Kelly walked out from behind the trees, a baby in each arm and a grinning, smug Chris waking next to him.

"Motherfucker," Mike whispered, glaring at Shelley when he grinned and elbowed the wolf. Randy felt his lips twitch and had to swallow the grin that wanted to escape.

"Ash Christopher and Sierra Cheyenne, welcome to the pack. May you always find safety and happiness with us."


End file.
